NaruHina: Tests and Trials of Love
by Haysel Raune
Summary: Continuation of "NaruHina:Captive Love" Naruto and Hinata struggle through the early stages of their relationship. They are both pushed to their limits and their love is tested far beyond what they could have imagined. But in the end...
1. Chapter 1

Naruto stood outside the Hyuuga house in shock. He couldn't believe it. Hiash had given him permission to marry Hinata. A few minutes ago Naruto had come into the Hyuuga main house expecting to have to fight tooth and nail to be with Hinata. And Hiashi had just given him permission to marry her. Then it hit him. They were free. They had done it. Naruto had Hiashi's permission to marry Hinata. She didn't have to marry Neji. Naruto smiled. He ran down the street, calling Hinata.

"Hinata-chan! Hinata-chan, where are you?" He called.

Hiata's head popped up. She had been sitting on the ground, knees pulled up to her chest, arms crossed over them, and head burried in her arms. She loked up when she heard Naruto call her. She pulled herself up off the ground, using the wall behind her for support.

"Naruto-kun?" She called back.

Naruto quickly pushed through a crowd of people to reach her. He ran over and picked her up at the waist and spun her around. Hinata chuckled, happily surprised.

"Naruto-kun! What's this about?" she asked.

Naruto set her down and pulled her into a passionate kiss. He pulled away and smiled.

"We did it, Hinata-chan. You're free. You don't have to marry Neji-san."he said as he happily lifted her in the air.

Hinata gave a gasping laugh. She stared at Naruto in unbeleif.

"W-what happened? What did he s-say?" She asked excitedly.

Naurto set her down and pressed her against the wall with a kiss. He smiled down at her.

"He said that I was the first person other than Kurenai-sensei to tell him how amazing you are." He said softly.

Hinata blushed.

"N-Naruto-kun..." she said, slightly embarassed.

Naruto laughed.

"it's true, Hinata-chan. You're an amazing woman."

He pressed his lips against hers and slid his hand into the small of her back. He craddled the back of her head with the other. Hinata put her hands agains his chest and closed her eyes. Unbelievable. Just a few minutes she had been destined to marry Neji. Now she could marry whomever she wanted. And, what's more, Naruto wanted her.

Naruto pulled away a bit and smiled at her lovingly.

"Do you want to go on another date?" he asked quietly.

Hinata blushed a bit.

"Yes." she squeaked.

Naruto slid his hand along Hinata's arm and locked his fingers with her's. He slowly guided her through the streets when he heard someone call his name.

"Naruto-kun!"

Naruto and Hinata turned around to see Sakura coming towards them. Naruto's brow furrowed.

"What is it, Sakura-chan?" he asked as she came up to him, panting.

"Tsunade-sama wants to see us. ' she panted.

Hinata felt a sharp pain in her heart and unconsiously tightened her grip on Naruto's hand. Naruto tightened his grip in response.

"Another mission?" he asked seriously.

Sakura nodded.

"Looks like it." she said.

Sakura looked awkwardly between Nruto and Hinata. Apparently they had been on a date of sorts. She felt her blood begin to boil and supressed her rising feeling of jealousy. Naruto looked at Hinata appologetically.

"As soon as I get back." he promised.

Hinata nodded. Naruto craddled her cheeck in his hand and gave her a quick kiss. Then he slowly brok her hold and followed Sakura to Hokage tower. Sakura glanced back at Hinata breifly. Hinata loked after them until they were out of sight.

"Be careful, Naruto-kun." she whispered.

She turned araound and squeeled in suprise. Right behind her were Shino and Kiba. Kiba grinned at her mischeviouosly.

"So, when were you gonna tell your best buds about your new boyfriend?" he asked playfully.

Hinata grew red.

"W-well, um, I-I...w-well it all happewned s-so fast..I-I, uh." she stammered

Kiba laughed.

"Relax, I'm just kidding. So, you and Uzumaki-kun, huh? Well it's about time." he said happily.

Hinata bowed her head, smiling. "W-w-what do you m-mean?" she asked shyly.

Kiba went up and put his arm around her shoulders.

"Aw, c'mon, don't play the 'I don't know what you mean' card with me. Shino-kun and I both know you've been after Naruto since before we were teammates."

He messed Hinata's hair playfully and she giggled. She looked at Shino.

"Well, Shino-kun, what do you have to say about it?" she asked curiously.

"You seem very happy, Hinata-chan. That's good enough for me." He said flatly.

HInata smiled.

"Thanks, Shino-kun." she said.

Kiba patted her on the back.

"Say, why don't Shino-kun and I treat you to some lunch to celebrate?" he suggested.

Akamaru barked in agreement. Hinata giggled and looked at them happily.

"That sounds nice." she said.


	2. Chapter 2

"...has been spotted near the Sand village. Now I want you to be careful, Naruto-kun...Naruto-kun?...BAKA-NARUTO-KUN!"

Naruto jerked out of his daydream at the sound of Tsunade's screech. He blinking wonderingly.

"W-what?" he asked in a daze.

Sakura smacked her forehead. Tsunade sighed.

"Did you hear anything I just said?" she asked, annoyed.

Naruto thought and tried desprately to remember. He smiled sheepishly.

"Eheh, what were you saying Tsunade-hime?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head.

Tsunade growled and put her hand on her forehead.

"Naruto-kun, this is important. Can you stop daydreaming for five seconds?"

Naruto nodded.

"Sorry, Tsunade-sama." he said

Tsunade sighed exasperatedly.

"As I was saying, a member of the Akatsuki has been spotted near the Sand village. Naruto-kun, you should be very careful. Keep in mind that they're still after the Jinjuriki." she repeated.

Naruto clenched his fists.

'Don't worry, tsunade-hime, you can count on me." he said seriously.

Tsunade rolled her eyes.

"Just stay calm and focused. That's all I ask." she said.

Tsunade looked at Kakashi.

"Any requests for the third member of your squad?" she asked.

Kakashi looked at Naruto and sighed. "HInata-sama, perhasp?" he suggested hesitantly.

Tsunadae, Naruto, and Sakura looked at Kakashi shocked. Tsuande blinked.

"Interesting choice." she muttered.

_So, the rumors about naruto-kun and Hinata-sama must be true._ she thought. She looked over her papers.

"Sorry, but Hinata-sama just reccently had a stress siezure. It was nothing serious but, with her heart the way it is. You understand?" she explained.

Kakashi nodded.

'Yes, of course."

Naruto looked at Tsunade in shock.

"S-Stress seizure?" he asked in awe.

Tunade looked at him.

"Because of the injuries she sustained during the chinnin exams, Hinata-sama has a weak heart that that tends to act up if she's put under a lot of stress in a short amount of time. Her body starts to go into shock and she has we like to call these "stress seizures". Like I said, it's nothing big, but she needs to stay well rested and have as little stress as possible for a few days after in order for her heart to recouperate." Tsunade explained.

Naruto was tightly grabbing the seat of his chair and leanign forward ever so slightly. His eyes were intense and filled with pain. _...Stress seizure...tends to act up if she's put under a lot of stress in a short amount of time... _Naruto's closed his eyes. The news of the engagement. He had nearly forgotten all about that. The way he acted when she told him. Images of Hinata's pale, scared face flshed in his mind. He felt as though someone had punched him in the chest.

"I didn't know." he said in a hur tone.

Sakura looked at Naruto sympathetically. _Poor Naruto-kun. He must be beating himself up about what happened yesterday._ She put a comforting hand on Naruto's knee. Tsunade looked at Naruto, pityingly. Then she sat up in her chair and lookd at Kakashi.

"How about Kiba-san?" she suggested.

Kakashi smiled. _Good idea, Tsunade-sama. Naruto-san has a lot of fun with Kiba-san. It's just the tihing to cheer him up._

"That sounds fine." he replied.

Naruto stood up and walked out of the room, lifelessly. Tsunade, Sakura and Kakashi looked after him until he was out the door. Then Tsunade sighed and rubbed her temples.

"Damn, I shouldn't have brought that up." she mumbled.

Sakura stood, still looking at the door. Kakashi closed his eyes and sighed.

"I'll talk with him. But back to the mission for a bit. Did your source happen to know which Akatsuki member we're dealing wiht here?"

Tsunade pulled a file out of a stack on her desk and read over it.

"He was able to describe the man. White hair, a large pendant around the neck, Hidden Rain headband with a mark through it and a large red sythe with three blades." she read off.

Kakashi thought.

"Hmm, doesn't sound like any we've faced yet. Well, we'll keep an eye out for him. And I'll be sure to keep Naruto-kun in check." he replied.

Tsunade nodded and looked at Sakura.

"Sakura-chan."

Sakura jumped and turned to face Tsunade.

"Yes, tsunade-sama?"

Tsunade smiled.

'He'll be fine." she reassured her.

Sakura blushed a bit and looked back at the door.

"Yeah I know."

Kiba gulped down the last of his ramen and gasped. He put his hands up in the air, victoriously.

"Yeah! A whole bowl in one minute and thirty-eight seconds!" he cheered.

Shino looked at his watch.

"I have 1:42." hesaid bluntly.

Kiba slumped a little. Then he perked up a bit.

'Well, it doesn't matter, that's still pretty fast right, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata giggled.

"Yes, Kiba-kun, I think I'd get a stomach ache if I tried to eat that fast." she replied.

Kiba grinned a goofy grin. Then his stomach grumbled loudly. He clutched it painfully.

"Unnnn~" he groaned.

Hinata laughed.

"Oops, guess I spoke to soon."

Kiba grinned and Akamaru came up and licked him on the cheek. Hinata put her chopsticks neatly on her plate and shoved it aside. She moved to get u.

"Thank-you very much for lunch, Kiba-kun and Shino-kun. It was fun spending time with you again." she said happily.

She started to walk away but Kiba stopped her.

"Hey, Hinata-chan." he said seriously.

Hinata lookd at him, confused.

"Yes, Kiba-kun."

Kiba smiled fondly.

"Be carefully, okay? Naruto-kun is a good guy ubt he's got a temper. If he ever gives you any trouble, let me know, okay?"

Hinata smiled.

"Thank-you, Kiba-kun. I will." she said gratefully.

She walked away and Kiba looked after her.

"She sure has come a long way, huh Shino-kun?" Kiba said.

"It took a while but, yes, she has grown in many ways." Shino observed.

Hinata walked to Kurenai's house. She wanted to tell her the good news. When she was still a ways aways, she spotted Naruto walking around with a meloncholy look on his face. She went up to him and grabbed his arm. He looked at her, surprised.

'N-Naruto-kun, what's wrong? Is someone hu-"

Naruto embraced her tightly, much to her surprise.

"N-Naruto-kun?"

Naruto squeezed her gently.

"I'm sorry, Hinata-chan." he said in a gravelly voice.

HInata was confused, but she just la her head on his shoulder.

"I forgive you, Naruto-kun. Always."


	3. Chapter 3

Hinata screamed and sat up in her bed. She panted heavily and she was shaking and sweating. Another nightmare. Ever since Naruto had left on that mission, she had been having terrible nightmares about him. The first night, she dreamed that the Nine-tailed fox took over his body and destroyed the village. The next night, she had dreamed that he had been captured by the Akastuki. Her subconsious came up with horrible ideas of what they were doing to him. The night before she dreamed that their conversation with Hiashi had all been a dream and she was forced to marry Neji. Tonight, it was much worse than any of them. In this nightmare she had to kill Naruto with her own hands. She looked adown at her hands and had to quickly shut her eyes. It was as if she could really see his blood on her hands. She looked again and the vision was gone. she clutched her chest and tried to calm herself down. The door opend and Hanabi came in, running her eye sleepily.

"Onee-chan, did you have another nightmare?" she asked drowsily.

Hiata force herself to smile.

"I-I'm fine, Hanabi-chan. You can go back to sleep." she lied.

Hanabi, not buying it, climbed up onto Hinata's bed. She looked at her sister,concerned.

"What was it this time?" she asked.

Hinata looked down at her hands again.

"Tsunade-sama ordered me to kill Naruto-kun." she said gravely.

Hanabi wrapped her arms around Hinata's arm.

"Well, it's not true, is it?" she asked quietly

Hinata shook her head. Hanabi lookd up at her.

'Then, thre's nothing to worry about. Naruto-san's not dead. And you and I both know that Tsunade-sama would never do anything like that"

HInata gave a small smile and patted her little sister on the head. So like Hanabi to be practical and logical. Hinata hugged her.

"Thank-you, Hanabi-chan. You can go back to bed now." she said gratefully.

Naruto gasped and sat up quickly. He panted heavily and his bare chest was covered in sweat. Another nightmare. This was the fourth on since he had left. Each was more horrible and elaborate than the next. Sakura stirred and looked over Kakashi and Kiba at Naruto. she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes.

"Another one?" she asked sleepily.

Naruto wiped the sweat from his brow and got up.

"I'm going out for a bit." he mumbled.

Sakura sighed. _Poor Naruto-kun, he hasn't slept since we left. _she thought.

Naruto went out and looked around the barren desert landscape. The only thing around for what semed lie a thousand miles was the little oasis that he and his team had found the da y before. They hadn't seen hide or hair of any Akatsuki member so far. All they had found was evidence of battles and destruction. They at least knew that someone was out there. Naruto went to the edge of the oasis and sat down on a rock. The cool desert night air whipped around him, buffeting him with sand, but he didn't mind. His thoughts were a hundred miles away. With Hinata. In his nightmares so far, she had been murdered, kidnapped, killed in childbirth, and now, tonight, captured by the Akatsuki as bait to lure him in. One particlular Akatsuki member, Itatchi, took a sick pleasure in making her miserable. Naruto ground his teeth. _It was just a dream. It wasn't real. _He told himself. He looked up at the clear night sky.

"Hinata-chan." he said wistfully.

Tsunade sat in her office, reading through some reports, when Shizune came in with a scroll.

"Tsunade-sama, a message just arrived. It's for Hyuuga-san. " she asid .

She walked up and handedn it to Tsunade. tsunade read over it, her eyes growing wide. She dropped the scrool onthe desk .

"Hinata-sama." she said horrified.

Shizune picked up the scroll and read it.

_"From HIdeaki Koizumi, Head of the Koizumi Clan  
>To The Hyuuga Clan<em>

_For the murder of Toshi Koizumi, brother of Hidekai, Son of Kimaki and Jyshio, the Koizumi Clan demands recompence. The Koizumi Clan demands the blood of HInata Hyuuga, heir of the Hyuuga Clan, as payment for this trangression. If Hinata Hyuuga is not delivered over to The Koizumi Clan before the end of the week, it shall be regaurded as an act of war. _

_ Signed,  
><em>_Hidekai Koizumi __"_

"Tsunade-sama, what is this about?" she asked in shock.

Tsunade shook her head.

"The people who tried to kidnap Hinata-sama, they were a rival clan of the Hyuuga's. Apparently, when Team Kakashi rescued her, they killed a high-ranking member of the clan. Neji-san told me of a time when something similar happened."

Tsunade slammed her fist down on the desk.

"DAMMIT! Who do these people think they are?" she growled.

Shizune bit her lip.

'What should we do?" she asked hesitantly.

Tsunade sighed and shook her head.

"As Hokage, I can't allow Hinata-sama to be killed."

She looked out the window.

"However, I aslo can't allow this rival clan to start a war."

Tsunade sat and thought for a long time. She pulled a bottle of Sake and took a couple of quick shots. She slammed down her fouth cup.

"Well, there's only one thing we can do for now."

She looked at Shizune.

"Send that message to Hiashi-san and tell him not to do anything without my permission. I'm interested to see what he has to say about all of this."

Hinata, Hiashi, Neji, and a few other members of the Hyuuga clan were having a meeting when Shizune delivered the letter. Hiashi opened it and read it carefully. Then he calmly closed it and set it on the floor. He slid the scroll over to Neji who also read it. Neji's eyes grew angry, but he remaind quiet. Hinata was getting nervous. _Why does Neji-san look so angry? _she thought. Neji put the scroll down and looked at Hinata gravely.

"What is is, Nii-san?" She asked worriedly.

Neji closed his eyes. Then he looked over at Hiashi. Hiashi sat staring at the ground, his brow wrinkled in thought. Panic tightened in Hinata's chest. What was going on? She had neveseen her father so concerned before. Hiashi looked at Shizune.

"I assume Hokage-sama has looked at this as well." he stated.

Shizuned nodded.

"She instructed me to tell you not to make any moves unless consulting her first."

Hiashi nodded.

"Very well. We shall discuss the matter and give her our descision tomorrow. YOu may go now, Sizune-san." he said.

Shizune bowed respectfully. She looked at Hinata sadly before going out the door. Hiashi looked at Hinata. Then he addressed the group.

"We have just received a message from the Koizumi Clan. In the rescue mission to retreive my daughter, Toshi Koizumi was killed. As can be expected, they are demamding blood as payment for their lost member."

Hiashi looked at Hinata.

"They want Hinata-san as payment."

Hinata gasped and the group was thrown into an uproar.

"How dare they!"

"They have no right to make such demands!"

"This is an outrage!"

"We should not stand for this!"

Hinata clutched her hand to her chest and put her finger on her lip. Her defense mechanism. She felt the blood drain from her face. The last time this happened, they had wanted her father's blood. His twin brother, Neji's father, had fooled the rival clan by taking his place. But Hinata did not have a twin sister. There would be no fooling them this time. Hinata was beyond tears. She was seized by sheer terror.

"Quiet! All of you!" Hiashi demanded.

The members of the Hyuuga clan quieted . Hiashi closed his eyes.

"You all remember when this happened in the past. My twin brother, Hizashi, bravely sacrificed himself in my place. We cannot get away with such deciet in this instance. "

Hiashi looked at Hinata and then at Neji.

"Neji-san, take your cousin out of here and help her calm herself." he said.

Neji nodded. He went over and helped Hinata up. She was practically hyperventalating by now. She shakily stood up and was out by Neji. The two went outside into the crisp morning air. Neji sat Hinata down on the steps. Neji rubbed her back while she tried desperately to get a hold of herself. She was shaking violently.

"I-I f-f-feel s-s-sick." she said weakly.

HInata felt strong arms wrap around her. She looked at Neji, surprised. He looked at her, tears welling in his eyes.

"Hinata-chan, if I could take your place, I'd do it in a heart beat." he said.

Hinata felt tears prick her eyes.

"Nii-san..." she said awestruck.

Neji pulled her close to him and closed his eyes.

"Hinata-chan, no matter what I've said or done in the past, I love you. I love you as if you were my sister. I promise, I'll do anything I can to protect you."

HInata was touched by this sudden burst of kindness from her normally stoic cousin. She hugged him tightly and burried her face in his shoulder. She cried inot his shoulder until she ran out of years. He sat, holding her close. He watched the sun slowly climb up over the horizon.

_If he were here right now, no doubt he would do everythiong in his power to protect her too. Naruto-kun...I'll do my best._


	4. Chapter 4

"Naruto-kun"

Naruto moaned and turned over in his sleep.

"Naruto-kun. Help."

"Hinata-chan?"Naruto mumbled.

"I need you, Naruto-Kun. Please, help."

"Where are you, Hinata-chan?"

There was the sound of a sword being drawn. Hinata screamed. There was the sound of steel meeting flesh and the gut wrenching sound of blood splattering.

"Hinata-chan!"

Naruto woke up screaming again. This time, he woke up his entire team. Kiba moaned and turned over, burying his head in his pillow. Akamaru yawned and snuggled closer to his master. Sakura mumbled and wiped the sleep out of her eyes. Kakashi merely sat up and looked at Naruto. Naruto was sweating heavily. He looked at the ground with a look of sheer terror in his eyes.

"A dream? Just another dream? But...it was so real." he said awestruck.

"Naruto-kun?"

Naruto jumped at the sound of Sakura's voice. He looked over to see a very worried looking Sakura staring at him.

"Naruto-kun, what's wrong?" she asked, concerned.

Naruto looked at Sakura, his eyes wide. Then he looked at the ground.

"She's in trouble."

Sakura sighed.

"Naruto-kun, It's just a dream. She's-"

"This was different!" Naruto objected.

Sakura shrunk back a bit at his harshness. He looked at her, a mixture of rage and pain on his face. Tears welled in his eyes. Kakashi stood.

"Alright then, time to go."

Sakura and Naruto looked at him surprised. He started folding up his sleeping bag.

"The Akatsuki member is obviously not around anymore. Besides, Naruto-kun's too distracted to be of any help." he said plainly.

Kakashi kicked Kiba. He flailed around like a dying bird.

"What's the big idea?" he demanded.

"Get up, we're going home." Kakashi said.

Kiba grumbled to himself.

'Can't we wait until morning at least?."

He looked over at Naruto.

"Hey, what's the matter with you?" he asked.

Naruto started taking his shirt off.

"Hinata-chan's in trouble." he said flatly.

Kiba blinked. Then he got up and started changing as well. Sakura sat staring, dumbfounded.

"B-but, what about the mission?" she asked.

Kakashi shrugged.

"Tsunade-sama's just going to have to send someone else out. We didn't find anything."

Sakura sighed. _Why do I get the feeling this was just another giant waste of time? _She looked over at Naruto. He was aggressively folding up his sleeping bag and packing it away. His eyes were intense and focused. He looked so tense. _Naruto-kun_.

"Hey, are you going to change?" Kakashi asked.

Sakura looked down at herself. That's right, I'm the only one still in pajamas.

"Yeah, I'll change." she said.

She got up and started to take her shirt of. Then she remembered she was in a tent with three guys. Her face turned red. She slapped Kakashi.

"WHAT'S THE IDEA TRYING TO GET ME TO TAKE OFF MY SHIRT IN FRONT OF YOU? " she screamed.

Kakashi's eyes sparkled and he rubbed his cheek. _She was taking her shirt off? Why didn't I pay better attention? _Sakura tossed Kakashi, Kiba, and Naruto out of the tent and zipped it behind them. Naruto rubbed his head.

"What's her problem? We changed in front of her." he grumbled.

Kakashi shook his head. _You just don't get it_.

When Hanabi heard the news, she came into Hinata's bedroom and cried. The sisters cried together until night. Rather than go back to her own room, Hanabi climbed in with Hinata when it was time for bed. Hinata didn't sleep. She stayed up all night thinking over things in her head. One week. One week until she either died or her family went to war. Neither option was favorable, obviously. She could have been thinking of a million things at that moment. If she died, what would she miss? Kurenai's baby? Hanabi growing up? Becoming the head of the Hyuuga clan? Becoming a Jonnin? But the one subject that bounced around in her mind the most was Naruto. When would he be back? When he got back, would she be there? Would they ever get to go on that date? If he made it in time, would he try and take her away? If her family went to war, would he fight with them? If he couldn't save her, what would he do? A few silent tears slid onto Hinata's pillow. One week. So much could happen in a week. But, right now, it seemed like an awfully short time.

Tsunade was slumped over her desk as the sun began to climb over the horizon. A beam of sunlight streamed across her rosy face and she groaned. Three empty bottles of Sake lay scattered on her desk. She felt like crap. She sat up and stretched and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. Hiashi had told her the day before that their plan was to hold off making a definite decision until the last possible moment. In other words, they had no idea what they were going to do and they needed the whole week to decide. Meanwhile, Hinata's life hung in the balance.

"Damn. I was hoping that had all been a dream. " she mumbled.

Shizune came in then. Tsunade looked up and was shocked. Shizune was a mess. There were rings under her red, puffy eyes. Her hair was haphazardly brushed and her clothes were disheveled. She looked at Tsunade and gave a weak smiled.

"I have some papers for you to go through." she said as she came in.

Her voice was raspy and quiet. She put the papers on Tsunade's desk. Tsunade smiled sadly.

"You're worried about her too, aren't you." Tsunade said, knowingly.

Shizune's lip quivered a little.

"Sometimes I think these kids know too much pain." she said in a choked voice.

Tsunade sighed.

"I know what you mean."

Naruto charged ahead of his team, despite Kakashi's countless warnings to stay close. All he knew was that he had to get to Hinata as soon as possible. They had been out for almost a week, but they were only a day away from the village. Naruto's heart raced. _Hinata-chan. I'm coming. Whatever's wrong, I'll fix it. I promise! _

Sakura shook her head.

"He going to drive himself crazy." she commented.

Kakashi shrugged.

"Well, as soon as he finds out that she's alright, he'll relax. He's just got to get used to being away from her and trusting that things are going to be alright."

Sakura half smiled. If only someone cared for her that much. She glanced over to find Kiba looking at her. When their eyes met, he quickly turned away, embarrassed.

"What?" Sakura asked him.

Kiba shook his head.

"Nothing. You look a little upset or something." he said nonchalantly.

Sakura shrugged.

'I just get worried about him, is all. He's been like an annoying little brother to me, you know?"

Kiba chuckled and gave a half smile.

"I know how it is. Shino-kun and I feel the same about Hinata-chan. Haha, only she gives more reason for concern!"

Kiba looked at Naruto.

"That guy can pretty much hold his own. He just needs someone to cool him down every once in a while. But Hinata."

Kiba looked down, suddenly seeming frustrated.

"She just doesn't believe in herself. She is more talented than she thinks."

Sakura looked at Naruto.

"Yin and Yang." she observed.

"Exactly." Kakashi confirmed.

Sakura looked at him, annoyed.

"Sensei, have you been listening this whole time?" she questioned.

Kakashi shrugged.

"On and off." he said playfully.

Sakura rolled her eyes. She looked at Naruto. _She's lucky_.

Hinata lay in bed all day. Hanabi and Neji popped in on her every once in a while. They always had the same thing to say. Nothing's decided yet. A maid brought food but Hinata didn't touch it. She just stayed in bed thinking about how radically her life had been changed. At around suppertime, she heard a knock on her door.

"Come in." she said hoarsely.

Kurenai opened the door and rushed over to Hinata. She lowered herself onto the bed and gathered Hinata up in her arms. Hinata threw her arms around her loving sensei and the two women cried softly together. After a few minutes, the crying stopped and Kurenai managed to get Hinata to eat some rice and drink a few cups of soothing tea. It helped but only a little. Kurenai sat with Hinata for a couple of hours. Neither of them said much, but Hinata felt infinitely better having Kurenai around. For as long as she could remember, Kurenai had been like a mother to her. In a time like this, Hinata felt safest when Kurenai was around. Kurenai left after the sun went down but promised to come every day until this whole thing was sorted out. Hinata's heart sank when she left. She curled up in bed, ready for day one of the most stressful week of her life to end.

Team Kakashi got back to the village at around midnight. Tsunade was just getting ready to go to sleep when they checked in. Naruto was the first in. Tsunade was shocked at how beat up he looked. He looked like he hadn't slept since they left. She cringed when he asked:

"How's Hinata-chan? Is she alright."

Tsunade sighed.

"Naruto-kun, sit down and try to be calm." she pleaded.

All of Naruto's muscles tensed, but he did as he was told. Tsunade rummaged around in her desk and pulled out a scroll. She sighed.

"We got this message two days ago." she said as she handed it to him.

Naruto read it. His eyes widened. His jaw dropped. The scroll slipped out of his hands and clattered to the floor. Curious and slightly afraid, Sakura picked t up and read it. She gasped in horror.

"Tsunade-sama...don't tell me they-"

"They haven't done anything about it, no. But they must do something before the week is up."

Kiba took the scroll from Sakura and read it. He ground his teeth.

"Shit. This is bad." he growled.

Finally, Kakashi read it. His eyes widened in surprise.

'Well, this is certainly a big problem." he said gravely.

Naruto clenched the edge of his seat so tight that the wood began to break.

"So, what are their plans?" he growled low.

Tsunade shook her head.

"Not even they know."

Naruto stood up and glared at Tsunade.

"What is there to consider? The answer is 'No', right?" he fumed.

Tsunade stood up.

"We are on the brink of war, Naruto-san! Now I realize that the alternative is unspeakable, but we may have no choice!"

Tears streamed down Tsunade's face. She slumped down into her chair and put a hand on her head.

"We don't know who these people are allies with. If we are not careful, this thing will turn into much more than a clan war. For all we know this could be what re-sparks the war between all the nations." she said frustratedly.

She looked at Naruto. He was shocked by how vulnerable she looked. Her eyes were full of pain.

"There are so many people who care about Hinata-sama, Naruto-kun. But if one life will save thousands then that is an option we must consider. " she said sorrowfully.

Naruto clenched his fist and ground his teeth angrily. He stared at the floor. He swore loudly.

"WHY HER?" He demanded.

He collapsed into his chair and buried his head in his hands.

"She's had to struggle all her life! Was that all for nothing?"

Sakura put a hand on his shoulder. He brushed her off, got up and went out. Sakura was hurt, but she didn't say anything. Naruto ran to Hinata's house. He burst through the front door and went straight into her room.

"N-Naruto-ku-"

Naruto grabbed Hinata up in his arms and pressed his lips passionately against hers. Hinata threw her arms around Naruto's neck. Tears streamed down their faces as they embraced eachother. They were both overwhelmingly happy and sad at the same time. Naruto slowly lowered Hinata onto her bed. Without really thinking about it, Hinata started to unzip his jacket. Naruto grabbed her hand and gently pulled away. He shook his head.

"No, Hinata-chan. Not like this." he said , his voice full of pain.

Hinata looked up at him through blurry tears. Her lip quivered.

"I-I'm not afraid anymore, Naruto-kun." she whispered.

Naruto looked at her tenderly.

"You've never been afraid, Hinata-chan. Not you. You're ready for anything."

He kissed her gently and pulled away.

"But I don't want to take you like this. Not because we feel rushed or because you're vulnerable."

He caressed her cheek.

"I want you. Not you like this. I want Hinata-chan, not her emotions." he whispered.

Hinata broke into sobs. Naruto lay beside her and cradled her in his arms.


	5. Chapter 5

Hinata woke up in Naruto's arms, a sensation she had feared she would never expirience. She yawned and snuggled closer to him. She could feel his heart beating against her skin. She sighed happily, the events of the days before completely wiped from her mind. Naruto yawned and tightened his hold on Hinata.

"Goodmorning, HInata-chan." he whispered in her ear.

Hinata turned her head and kissed him.

"Goodmorning, Naruto-kun.' she replied.

Slowly buy surely they couple began to wake up and remember the dire situation before them. HInata wanted nothing more than to bury herself under her covers and shut the rest of the world out, but Naruto encouraged her to get out for a while. He went home and changed while Hinata got ready.

Meanwhile, Hiashi was locked in a battle with himself. Hinata: His first born. He had just discovered her drive and passion; her relentlessness. She had finally proven herself to him. He thought of all the years he wasted pushing her away. Now, when he was finally ready to try and restore their relationship, would she be taken away from him forever? And what if she wasn't? It would be the descision of the clan, but ultimately he was responsible. Would he have to put his own daughter to death? Or would he be responsible for the outbreak of a horrible war? He hadn't stopped wrestling with himself over the matter since he had first read the horrifying message. Images of Hinata; cold, pale, and lifeless; never stopped haunting his mind.

Hinata spent the entire day with Naruto. They ate breakfast together, went for a walk around town, ate lunch, went for a walk in the park, ate dinner, and then they went to Naruto's appartment. After Naruto shut the oor, he turned and pulled Hinata into his arms. She put her hands against his chest. They looked at each other lovingly. Hinata went up on her tip-toes and kissed him. He kissed her back. The two of them fit together perfectly. It was so natural. Naruto traced Hinata's neck with his lips. He gently pushed back the collar of her shirt. Hinata shuddered ever so slightly. Naruto paused.

"Don't stop." she pleaded in a breathy voice.

Naruto chuckled. He gently guided her to his bed and set her down gently. Hepushed her shirt up a bit and kissed her stomach. HInata clossed her eyes and ran her fingers through his hair. She was blushing furiously, but she didn't care. Naruto slowly unzipped Hinata's jacket part way. He kissed a trail down her neck to her chest. Hinata felt a sigh of joy rise to her lips. She reached up and unzipped Naruto's jacket. She put a hand on his bare chest and ran it up to his shoulder. He kissed the inside of her neck and she ran her finger through his hair, breathing in deeply. She pushed his jacket off his shoulders a bit and ran her hand down his back. He gently unzipped her jacket the rest of the way. Hinata sighed. He put a hand on her stomach and kissed her lips again. Tears sprung to Hinata's eyes. She turned her head away.

"I-I'm s-s-sorry, N-Naruto-kun." she squeaked.

She put her finger to her lip and closed her eyes. Naruto stood up and turned around. HInata wimpered quietly.

"I-I-I'm sorry." she said again.

Naruto zipped up his jacket and shrugged.

" Its okay. You're not ready. I'm fine with that."

He felt her clutch his sleeve. He turned to look at her. She looked up at him appologetically.

"I-It's not th-th-that. I-I'm just s-s-so unsure of everything right n-n-now." she said softly.

She looked down.

"I-I want to...give you...all of me..."

She looked up at him, a sad smile on her face.

"...forever...I-I want to give you everything."

Naruto's vision blurred with tears. He cupped her head in his hands and pulled her to his chest.

"Hinata-chan..." he said lovingly.

"She is the future head of this clan. As such, it is her responsibility, her duty, to do whatever is best for the clan as a whole. We can decide whatever we want here today but, in the end, it comes down to her. She could die for the good of her people. She could run away from her duty and plunge her people into a devastaing war. Or she could make a declaration of war and lead her people valiantly."

It was the sixth dayof the week. They Hyuuga council were all gathered. Members of all different branches were there. They needed to make a descision and soon. Each reprsentative in the council was giving their answer and the reason for it. Hinata's uncle, on her mother's side, was speaking now. Hiashi sat, listening intently. Hinata sat at his right. Hanabi sat slightly behind and to the right of her sister. Neji sat on Hiashi's left. Neji watched each speaker carefully, judging their opinions and logic in his mind. Hinata looked at no one. She sat with her head bowed, looking at the floor. Whenever anyone talked about "her sacrifice" she felt Hanabi touch her back. When her uncle was done speaking, he sat down. Hiashi stood up. Just as he was about to speak, Tsunade burt into the room. Everyone turned to look at her, all shocked by her sudden appearence.

She was panting heavily. Her cheeks were rosey. Hiashi cleared his throat.

"Do you have some news, Tsunade-sama?" he asked.

Tsunade starightened up.

"Not so much news as an idea." she said.

Hiashi looked at Tsunade curiously. He sat down.

"Please." he said.

Tsunade steped into the room. She glanced at Hinata, then adressed the group.

'I've been thinking long and hard about this whole situation. I'm sure you know to what situation I'm reffereing to. I have thought through several different scenarios and possible outcomes. I beleive I have an idea as to what to do. It may not solve the problem, but it will buy us some time, at the very least."

"Tell us." Hiashi insisted.

Tsunade looked at Hiashi very seriuosly.

"Tell this other clan that Hinata-sama is pregnant."

Hinata froze. The entire room was dead silent. Tsunade looked around as everyone slowly digested what she had said. She could see them all thinking it over.

"You're right. That won't solve our problem."

Everyone looked at Hiashi. His eyes were closed. He looked up at Tsunade. a small smile passed his lips.

"But it will provide more time." he said.

Hinata felt her heart nearly fly out of her chest.

"9 months. That's more than enough time to really consider every option, no matter how raical. If all it does is give us more time, that's enough." Tsunade confirmed.

Hishi looked around at the council.

"Any objections?" he asked.

The room was silent. Hiashi looked at Tsunade.

"Prepare the message immeadiately." he said.

Tsunade nodded. She looked at Hinata and gave her a quick smile. Tehn she turned around and went away. Hinata sat in shock. Pregnant. 9 months. Even though she knew it wasn't real, her hand instinctively went to her stomach. She felt Hanabi's light touch on her back. Hinata smiled. 9 more months. Compared to the seven days she had previously, it seemed like a lifetime.

Naruto put his hand under Hinata's bare back. He pulled her up toward him. She sighed with utter bliss. He kissed the inside of her neck. She ran her hand along his chest and the played with the hair at the back of his head. Their legs entwined. Hinata ran her toes along his calf. She gasped and he stroked her arm gently.

"Hinata-chan..." Naruto whispered blissfully

"Naruto-kun..." she replied breathlessly.

HInata lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. She was at an all time high. She felt Naruto steady, strong heartbeat next to her and a excited shiver went up her spine. She smiled and sighed. Naruto yawned and turned over to face her. He smiled.

"Goodmorning, Aisuru(Love)." he said lovingly.

Hinata blushed.

"Goodmorning, Naruto-kun." she replied before kissing him on the cheek.


	6. Chapter 6

As the days went by, Naruto and Hinata pretty much lapsed back into their normally routines. Naruto went on a few B and C Rank missions a couple of times but he was always back in a matter of days. Hinata was confined to the village on "Pregnancy Leave" She spent most of her days either learning the ropes of being the Head of the Hyuuga Clan (just in case) or going through "Motherhood 101" with Kurenai. She and Naruto got together whenever they could. Their dates never got as serious as that first night. After the better part of four weeks, though, Hinata began to feel strange. She started feeling queasy a lot. She got horrible headaches and backaches for no apparent reason. She started getting a little suspicious, but she waved it off as her imagination. Then they became more aggressive and frequent. And finally, she missed it (I really don't know how else to phrase this appropriately ^^').

When Hinata finally realized it, she went straight to Kurenai. Kurenai was, to put it mildly, ecstatic. In fact, Hinata didn't even have to tell her anything. As soon as Kurenai opened the door and saw the look on Hinata's face, she knew. She squealed at the top of her lungs and glomped Hinata.

"K-Kurenai-sensei...you're going to hurt the baby." Hinata said as Kurenai's surprisingly strong arms squeezed the life out of her.

Kurenai let go and looked at her slyly.

"Yours or mine?" she asked playfully.

Hinata turned bright red. Kurenai ushered her into the house. The two sat down on Kurenai's couch. Hinata wrung her hands nervously.

"What do I do? What will Naruto-kun say? "

She gasped.

"What will Chichi-san say ?"

Kurenai put a hand on Hinata's shoulder.

"Take it easy, you don't have to tell them right away. " she said soothingly.

Kurenai put an arm around Hinata's shoulder.

"For now, it might be best that you keep doing what you're doing. Learn everything you can about being a mother. People will think you're just going with the plan. Then, when you start to shoiw signs, you can tell them."

Kurenai bit her lip.

"That may prove troublesome to their descision making though. It will definately become a huge factor into how to deal with things."

Kurenai looked at Hinata.

"I can tell him for you if you want. Your father that is. You're going to have to tell future daddy yourself."

Hinata shook her head.

"No, I have to tell them myself." she said queitly.

Kurenai patted her on the back.

"Hey, cheer up. With the exception of the morning sickness, back pain, swollen ankles, mood swings, cravings, and labor, being pregnant is a wonderful expirience."

Hinata had to laugh. Kurenai rubbed the back of her head and chuckled.

"Heheh, I know how that sounds."

She looked tenderly at her round belly. She rubbed it gently, her heart leaping when she felt a small kick. She smiled at Hinata.

"But it really is the most amazing thing in the world." she said awestruck.

She grabbed Hinata's hand and put it on her tummy. Hinata stared in wonder. She gasped when she flet a tiny little foot hit her hand. Her eyes sparkled. Kurenai gave her a knowing smile.

"Hinata-chan, no matter what anyone else says, you are going to be a wonderful mother."

A tear rolled down Hinata's cheek. Her free hand went to her own stomach. She knew that she wasn't going to be able to feel anything yet, but the promise that she would someday soon made her heart flutter. She was going to have a baby. Naruto's baby. She thought back to the dream she had weeks ago. The one where she woke up next to Naruto. Their kids. Twins. A girl: Michiko. And a boy: Masashi. Hinata locked those names away in her memory. She looked at Kurenai.

"You're right. This is...an amazing journey...and, if he'll have me, Naruto-kun and I are going to face it together. " she said hopefully.

Deep inside her heart, however, she was terrified.

Hinata and Naruto walked throught the park holding hands. As they walked, Hinata was overcome by a sudden fear. What if Naruto got angry? What if he didn't want to be a father? She became increasingly nervous. Naruto could sense it. Finally, he turned to her.

"Hinata, is something wrong?"

HInata blushed and fidgeted with her finghers. She looked around to see if anyone was near. She looked up at Naruto.

"Let's sit down some place." she suggested.

Teh two of the went off the path and sat down under a tree. They sat fin silence for a while. Hinata looked up at the leaves of the trees, Naruto didn't take his eyes off of her. A small tear rolled down HInata's cheek. she turned to Naruto, smileing.

"N-Naruto-kun...I'm...I'm going to have a baby."

Naruto sat in shock for a bit. Then he laughed.

"Wow! You really had me going there for a second, Hinata-chan! " he said.

He looked at Hinata, waiting for her to laugh. Her lip quivered slightly. Naruto frowned.

"I-I'm not k-kidding." she said in a broken voice.

Naruto's eyes grew wide.

"Hey, wait, so you're serious?" he said, unbeleiving.

Tears streamed down Hinata's face. She nodded. Then she burried her head in her hands. Naruto kneeled in front of her and hugged her. She cried on his shoulder.

"Naruto-kun...I'm so scared..." she cried.

Naruto rubbed her back. He put his hands on her shoulders and gently lifted her up to look at her in the eyes.

"Hinata-chan...you aren't in this alone. " he said seriously.

He grabbed her hand. His eyes sparkled with tears. He smiled.

"Hinata Hyuuga, will you marry me?" he asked.

Hinata's heart swelled. She threw her arms around him.

"Y-yes! Yes, I'll marry you, Naruto-kun!" She sobbed.


	7. Chapter 7

"…and Naruto-kun loves me too. He wants to marry me, Chichi-san. If you want, we'll live here for a while. But we are going to raise this child on our own. He or she will become the heir to the Hyuuga clan, but I refuse to hold them to your standards. Our child will be loved and nurtured like a normal child. They will grow up in a loving, happy home. And you will have no say in their training either. If they want to hone their fighting skills, that's their own choice. If you don't like that, you'll just have to deal with it, because I won't change my mind."

Hinata groaned and shook her head.

"I can't say that!" she exclaimed.

She wrung her hands nervously. She was in Naruto's apartment, trying to figure out how to tell her father of her pregnancy and engagement to Naruto. She cleared her throat.

"Chichi-san, I have something important to tell you. Now listen to everything I have to say before you - No, that doesn't sound right either!"

She ran a hand through her hair and took a deep breath.

"Chichi-san, I'm pregnant and I'm going to marry Naruto-kun!" She said boldly.

She moaned and buried her head in her hands. This was impossible. Maybe she should let Kurenai tell him. No, that wouldn't end well. Hinata had to tell him, but it had to be just came in, leaned against the door and sighed.

"Wow, who knew that rings were so expensive?" he mumbled to himself.

He smiled at Hinata and walked over to her. He put his hands on her shoulders and ushered her over to his bed.

"Sit down, Hinata-chan. I've got something I wanna do." he said.

Hinata forced herself to smile, despite still being anxious about telling her father the news. Naruto pulled a small box out of his back pocket and went down on one knee.

"Heh, I know we kinda already did this part, but I want to do it right." he explained

He opened the box and held it toward Hinata.

"Hinata-chan, will you marry me?" he asked.

Hinata looked at the ring. It wasn't fancy by any means. It was very simple. A small silver band and a little wite diamond in the center. It was gorgeous. Hinata picked up the bozx and craddled it in her hands. She smiled at Naruto.

"You already know my answer. Yes. Yes, I'll marry you." she said tenderly.

Naruto smiled a big cheesy smile. He took the box from Hinata and took the ring out. He gently grabbed her hand and slid the ring into place. He stared at it, smiling sadly.

"Gosh, it really doesn't do you justice. But it was the best I could do on such short notice." he said sadly.

Despite herself, Hinata felt a little hurt.

"Well, you didn't have to buy a ring right aay, Naruto-kun. YOu could have saved up more if you wanted. Besides, I think it's wonderful." she said.

Naruto looked at Hinata.

"Well I couldn't have waited long. I mean, we're going to have to get married pretty soon."

He laughed and rubbed the back of his head.

"I mean, we don't want that thing popping out inthe middle of the aisle." he joked.

Now Hinata felt really hurt. She stood up and turned away from Naruto.

" 'That thing'. Your child, that's what 'that thing' is! " she said coldly.

Naruto was shocked and a little hurt by Hinata's harsh words.

"Hey, I didn't-"

She turned around and cut him off.

"I'm sorry this _**thing**_ is so inconvenient for you! I'm sorry that the happiest moment in my life didn't come with a little more notice!" she screeched.

Naruto stood up and put his hands up.

"Hey, take it easy, I was just kidding!" he said defensively.

Hinata's eyes widened.

"How can you kid at a time like this, Naruto-kun! This isn't a joke, this is our lives!"

"I know that, Hinata-chan." he said, hurt.

"I don't think you do! I'm pregnat, Naruto-kun! I'm going to have a baby! Your baby! And, unless my clan is willing to go to war, as soon as I have it I'm going to be killed!" she sceamed.

Tears were streaming down Hinata's face. She was tense all over. Her delicate facial features were all twisted into an expression of rage.

"You may have to rasie a child all on your own! Are you ready for that? Do you know how to raise a child, Naruto-kun?"

"Geez, Hinata-chan, settle down! You're irrational and horomonal! You just need to calm down!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Naruto wanted to shoot himself. He expression softened and he reached out to Hinata.

"HInata-chan, I'm so sorry." he said appologetically.

Hinata looked down at the floor, her expression darkened. Tears fell form her eyes and spattered the ground. She slid the ring off her finger and let it drop to the floor. She brushed past Naruto and, despite his efforts to stop her, ran out. Naruto ran after her, calling her name, but she ignored him. She kept running, heading fo rher house. She was almost there when she ran straight into Tsunade. Tsunade grabbed Hinata by her shoulders and looked at her confused.

"Hinata-sama, what's the matter?" she asked, shocked.

HInata just buried her head in her hands and sobbed. Tsunade, very unsure of herself, awkwardly put her arms around Hinata.

"There, there." she said, trying to be comforting.

Naruto came running up. He went and put a hand on Hinata's shoulder.

"Hinata-chan..." he started.

"Leave me alone, Naruto-san!" Hinata yelled, her hands still covering her face.

Naruto eyes welled with tears.

"Hinata-chan please." he begged.

"I think you should leave her, Nruto-kun." Tsunade said seriously.

Naruto looked up at Tsunade and opened his mouth to say something. Tsunade closed her eyes and sook her head. Naruto looked at Hinata, hurt in is eyes. He walked away, dejectedly. Tsunade rubbed Hinata' sback and led her into the main Hyuga house.

_I wonder what this is all about?_


	8. Chapter 8

Hiashi nodded calculatedly.

"I see." he said gravely

He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well, this complicates things." he sighed.

Tsunade shook her head.

"Not at all. In fact, it makes our descision for us." she said seriuosly.

Hiashi looked at Tsunade curiously. She looked at him seriuosly.

"If the Koizumi Clan wages war against you, I'll do what I can. Hinata-sama must not die now. She has a child that she must raise, by the way things looked today, on her own." Tsunae said finally.

Hiashi closed his eyes and sighed.

"I can tell by that look on your face that there will be no changing your mind." he said annoyed.

He looked up at Tsunade at nodded.

"Alright, then. It's decided. We will declare war. I just hope you know what you're doing. " he said.

Tsunade bowed and walked out of the room. She was going to leave, but instead she went into Hinata's room. Hinata had calmed down considerably. She sat on her bed, staring out the window, fidgeting with her fingers. Tsunade knocked on the frame of the door.

"Come in." Hinata said sadly.

Tsunade came and sat on the other side of the bed.

"So, what exactly happened?" Tsunade asked.

Hinata sniffed.

"I yelled at him. I don't know why, but I did. He's been so sweet throughout this whole thing...and I treated him so badly." Hinata anwered quiveringly.

Tsunade sighed.

"I don't doubt it. One of the wonderful things about being pregnant is that your horomones go all out of wack. Naruto probably said something stupid and it set you off."

Hinata was silent for a moment.

"Do you think...he'll forgive me/" she asked quietly.

Tsunade chuckled.

"Naruto-kun? Of course! He's probably beating himself up about this whole thing thinking it's his fault. Heck, if you wait for a while, you might even get some appology candy out of the deal." Tsunade joked.

Hinata laughed. She turned around to look at Tsunade.

"Thank you, Tsunade-sama." she said gratefully.

Tsunade smiled.

"Don't mention it." she said as she got up to leave.

"Oh! I almost forgot!" Tsunade exlaimed.

She turned and looked at Hinata.

"I just got done speaking with your father. In light of your _actual _pregnancy, he's decided to go to war against the Kiozumi Clan to win your freedom." she announced.

Hinata's heart leapt. Tears sprung to her eyes.

"You mean..."

Tsunade nodded and winked.

"Go get you man, HInata-chan." she said playfully.

HInata got up and glomped Tsunade before rushing out of the house. Tsunade rolled her eyes. _That girl was easily excitable before. Pregnacy just make her more bold._

Hinata ran for Naruto's appartment as fast as she could. Naruto was standing outside, leaning against the doorframe. When he saw Hinata running toward him he stepped out, shocked.

"Hinata-ch-Oof!"

Hinata threw herself at Naruto. He caught her in his arms. She wraped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

"It's alright, Naruto-kun. Everything is going to be fine!" she said happily.

Naruto looked at her, confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

He put Hinata down. She clutched the front of his shirt and looked up at him happily.

"Tsunade talked to Chichi-san. He going to go to war to save me, Naruto-kun! We can get married and have a long, happy life together." she said.

Naruto smiled, his eyes sparkling. He picked Hinata up at the waist and twirled her around.

"Oh, this is GREAT, Hinata-chan!" he said happily.

Hinata laughed and threw her arms out. Naruto stopped spinning. Hinata put her hands on his head. He let her down slowly. Her hands went from the top of his head, down his neck , and came to rest on his shoulders. Naruto smiled down at Hinata and she batted her eyes. They kissed, blissfully unaware of anyone else.

Sakura stared at the happy couple, hot tears pricking her eyes. She had come to ask Naruto to have Ramen with her and talk. It was someting that she and Naruto had always done. Until now. She quickly turned away from them and ran home. Things were happening too quickly. Naruto was finally growing up. And Sakura didn't like it.

Naruto pulled away from Hinata. He reached in his back pocket and fished out the ring again. He grabbed her hand and slipped it back on. He smiled at her.

"Do I have to ask again?" he asked playfully.

Hinata giggled.

"I love hearing you say it." she said.

Naruto brushed her hair back and cupped her head in his hand. He kissed her softly then smiled.

"Hinata-chan, my precious love and mother of my child, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?" he asked in a steamy tone.

Weather out of force of habit or because she was genuinely embarrassed, Hinata blushed.

"Yes, Naruto-kun, father of my child and my one true love forever, I will marry you." she said in a silky tone.

Within a week, everybody knew that Hinata was really pregnant. And nobody guessed twice at who the father was. Naruto also made it very clear that if anyone had a bad word to say about Hinata, they'd have to file all complaints to him and pay the consequnces. It didn't completely stop people from talking, but at least they made double sure that neither Naruto nor Hinata was around. They also knew better than to mention anything about it around Sakura or Neji. It was a definate buzz button with them. One poor, uinknowing soul mentioned to Sakura that he had thought she and Naruto had been a couple at one point. 5 fractured ribs, 3 broken, internal bleeding in three major organs, loss of feeling in manhood for three hours, partial cuncusion, broken leg, shattered scapula, and a nasty looking bruise in the shape of Sakura's fist on his cheek. Tsunade reprimanded her by forcing her to play a game of one on one dodgeball. With bowling balls.

Hinata went to see Tsunade every two weeks for a check-up. At the fourteen week mark, Tsunade used her healing skils to do a more thourough inspection. Naruto was there, holding Hinata's hand the entire time. He became worried when Tsunade looked puzzled.

"What is it, Tsunade-hime?" he asked.

Tsunade's eyes grew wide. She smiled at Naruto.

"Well it's good news: The babies are both happy and healthy." she said chipperly.

Naruto nearly exploded. Hinata was stunned beyond all beleif.

"Ts-Ts-Tsunade-sama...did you say...b-b-b-both?" she asked.

Tsunade put her hands on her hips and grinned widely.

"Yep! Naruto shoots and he scores! Two perfect bullseyes!" she said, on the verge of cracking up.


	9. Chapter 9

Hinata smoothed her dress over her small baby-bump. 15 week with twins and you could still barely tell. Unless you saw her profile. She looked at herself in her full length mirror as TenTen fixed the ribbon that tied in the back.

"Hinata-chan, you look so beautiful." she said in awe.

Hinata smiled.

"Thank you, TenTen-chan."

Ino came over and put a hand on Hinata's shoulder.

"Yeah, you look fantastic! " she praised.

Hinata looked at herself in the mirror again. She looked stunning. Her dress was sleeveless and knee length. The bodice had pink and cream ribbons weaved in a criss-cross pattern and a cluster of little lavender and white tulle flowers in a bunch at the top right. The skirt was plain and loosely pleated and had two layers of tulle under it; one lavender and one white. Her hair looked very complicated. She had five braids that went back from her bangs and into a braided bun. Then the rest of her hair fell out of the bun in loose curls like a black waterfall. A small white gold tiara was set in front of the bun and from it sprung three layers of white tulle that made up her veil. The first layer was enough to cover just her eyes, the second covered her entire face, and the last hung over her hair and went down to her mid-back. She had on white 1/2 inch open heels that laced up to her mid calf with white ribbon. She had on a white gold necklace that

branched out like a chandelier on her neck. It had small purple amethyst teardrops in the gaps. She wore white silk gloves that went up to just under her elbows; the tops of which were tied with long lavender ribbons. All bought by her father. Hinata felt like a princess.

Sakura sat on Hinata's bed, feeling incredibly awkward. The last thing she had expected was for Hinata to ask her to be a bridesmaid. When she asked, Sakura had wanted to punch her in the face. Then she figured that Hinata had no idea how Saukura felt about Naruto. She couldn't say no. If she did, she'd be the one that would look like a jerk. So, she just tried her best to smile and be as supportive as she could. She got up and fixed Hinata's veil.

"Here, this is a little crooked. Lemme fix it for you." she said nicely.

The idea of ripping the veil off and tearing the dress apart flashed through Sakura's mind. She pushed it away. She couldn't ruin the wedding. Naruto and Hinata would never forgive her. What's more, Tsunade would never forgive her, and that was a very scary thought.

Shizune came in carrying a beautiful bouquet of white calla lilies, purple lisianthus, lilac lisianthus, and white lily of the valley. It was all wrapped in white silk and tied with a single lavender ribbon. She handed it to Hinata.

"Here you go, Hinata-sama. " she said.

Hinata reach over and grabbed the bouquet. She put it up to her face and inhaled deeply. She sighed.

"Is this really happening? Am I really getting married?" She said dreamily.

Ino, TenTen, and Shizune laughed. Sakura laughed awkwardly. Maid-of-Honor Kurenai came in with a bright smile on her face.

"Oh, Hinata-chan! You look stunning!" She said as she circled around her.

She picked up Hinata's hand and placed her own over it.

"How are you feeling? Nervous?"she asked

Hinata smiled nervously.

"Terrified. And a little queasy. And VERY hungry. But that might just be the kids." she said.

Kurenai laughed.

"Or the fact that you haven't eaten anything all day."

Everyone laughed. Hanabi poked her head in.

"Everyone's ready." she said.

Hinata tensed up. She looked at Kurenai desperately. Kurenai gave a knowing smile.

"We'll be right there. Ladies, can I get a few moments alone with the lucky girl?" She asked.

All the girls nodded and slowly shuffled out.

"Two minutes." Shizune warned before closing the door.

Kurenai led Hinata over to her bad and sat down with her.

"This is the part where the mother sits down and gives the bride some ancient wife-to-be wisdom."

Hinata looked down at her hands sadly. Kurenai continued.

"Now, of course, we both know I'm not your mom. And I would never try to replace her either. But I feel like your mother in many ways. I've watched you grow and learn. I've been there with you, helping you discover who you are. I've seen you grow in so many ways. And I want you to know that I am so proud of the beautiful woman you've become."

She gently lifted Hinata's head. Both women had tears in their eyes. Pregnancy made wedding much more tearful. Kurenai looked Hinata in the eyes.

"And I know your mother would be very proud too." She said tenderly.

The brim of Hinata's tears spilled over the rim of her eye lid and slid halfway down her rosy cheek. Kurenai gently brushed it away.

"Now, are you ready to become Hinata Uzumaki?" she asked.

Hinata nodded and threw her arms around Kurenai's neck. Kurenai patted her back gently. The the two stood up and Kurenai escorted Hinata out of her room.

The wedding was set up in the garden at the main Hyuuga house. Kurenai led Hinata to the back door. They passed the entire wedding party until they came to Hiashi. He was dressed in a black and white kimono. Kurenai handed Hinata to him and went back to her place in the procession. Hiashi smiled and offered his elbow up. Hinata looped her hand under and rested it on her father's forearm. He pulled Hinata's veil over her face gently. He leaned down and whispered in her ear.

"I'm love you, Hinata-chan. " he whispered.

Hinata's eyes watered. It was the first time she had heard that from her father in the longest time. She quickly wiped the tears away as the music started. Her father opened the door. The garden was beautiful. Purple and white flower pedals covered the entire ground. Purple and white ribbons hung from every branch in every tree. And, waiting under a purple and white flower arch, was Naruto in a deep purple kimono trimmed with white. Hinata's heart fluttered furiuosly. Everyone stood and watched her as she walked down the aisle with her father. For one moment, everything in the world was perfect.

How quickly perfect could become a disaster.

Hinata heard a wizzing sound and then flet a sharp pain in her back. She gasped and dropped her bouquet. About fifteen people rushed for Hinata at the same time. One of them was Kurenai. The rest wer all strangers. Hiashi swore.

"The Koizumi clan." he growled.


	10. Chapter 10

Hiashi drew his sword and stood protectively in front of Hinata. Ino, TenTen, Shizune, Sakura, and Hanabi formed a circle around her. Kurenai helped Hinata to the ground. She took the shuriken out of Hinata's back carefully and put her hand over the wound to slow the bleeding. Evrything happened so quickly. Just like that her wedding day had turned into a battlefeild. Luckily, most of the people at the wedding were ninja. Chaos quickly ensued. People in their Sunday best fought small groups of assasins with the Koizumi crest on their backs. Hinata looked around frantically for Naruto. He was still up at the alter, fighting off five or six guys.

Kurenai swore.

"I was afraid something like this would happen." she growled.

She stood and helped Hinata up.

"Ino, TenTen, Sakura, and Hanabi! Help me get her out of here!" Kurenai yelled over the sounds of battle.

The girls nodded and formed a close group around Hinata. Kurenai led them into the house. She went into the meeting room and over to the far wall. She moved a portion of the panneling aside to reveal a secret armoury.

"Take anything you think you might need. There's fa few day's rations in here too so pack theose." she told the girls.

The girls all grabbed backpacks and started shoving as many sharp projectiles in them as possible. Especially TenTen. Kurenai helped Hinata get out of all her fancy wedding attire. She was left with just the dress and her engagement ring. They didn't have time to undo the hair. Kurenai grabbed a pack and filled it mostly with food and then threw a full pack to Hinata. She looked around at her rag-tag team.

"Hiasha-san and I had a plan in case something like this happened. We need to head for the Sand as soon as possible." she said.

The girls nodded. Kurenai led them out of the house and into the street. AS they ran away, Hinata could clearly hear the sounds of battle coming from behind the house. In the fray, she heard Naruto roar. A tear rolled down Hinata's cheek.

"Naruto-kun..." seh said sadly.

The group didn't meet an ememy until they got to the gate. A handful of Koizumi ninja were blocking their exit. Kurenai growled and lunged for the closest one, sinking three shuriken in his chest before he had time to react. TenTen took two out with kunai from far away. Sakura launched herself in the air and came down in the middle of three of them and went to work. Ino took on the last one just a second before Hianta and Hanabi go there. They quickly took to the trees and headed for the Sand Village.

"HInata-chan! Hanabi-san! Use your Byakugan!" Kurenai commanded.

The Hyuuga girls activated their Byakugan.

"We have pursuers. Twelve in all." Hanabi reported.

Kurenai nodded.

"Just keep going. We need to just ignore them unless they catch up with us. Keep me posted on it." she said.

"They're gaining fast." Hinata said.

Kurenai swore.

"I guess we have no choice then. Get into position. Hinata, stay in back. " she commanded.

The girls turned and braced themselves. Hinata fell to the back. In a matter of seconds, people started popping out all over. They came to rest on branches a few feet away from the girls. The apparent leader stood up and took off her mask. She smiled wickedly.

"Listen, neither of us wants to waste precious time and energy. We're only here for the girl. Once we have her, we''l leave. So just hand her over, okay?" she said arrogantly.

Kurenai laughed.

"If you think it's as easy as that, then you've been terribly deceived." she retorted.

The other woman shrugged and sighed.

"I though I might as well try. It's such a pain having to do the dirty work when Hidekai has one of his whims." she said tiredly.

The Koizumi ninja split up and went in different directions. The Konoha girls waited, poised for attack.

"Sensei! To your left! Ino-chan they're coming form behind. Sakura-chan, look up! TenTen-chan, underneath!" Hanabi called out.

Naruto stood in the middle of the aftermath, panting. As quickly as they had come, the Koizumi clan had dissappeared. Naruto was a wreck. His kimono was all torn up. He was bruised and bleeding all over. The rest of the guests weren't looking much better. Tsunade pulled a kunai out of her last victim's chest and stood up.

"Damn. I never thought they'd stoop this low.' she said under her breath.

Shizune came to Tsunade's side.

"What are we going to do, Tsunade-sama?" she asked.

Tsunade sighed.

"For now we need to clean up this mess and tak care of anybody who's hurt. Check for surviving Koizumi Clan members. We need to get some information." she said.

Naruto looked around.

"Where's Hinata-chan?" he asked desperately.

Hiashi came up, clutching his right arm.

"Kurenai-san took her away. We made a plan in case something like this would happen. She's taking her to the Hidden Sand." he said.

Naruto looked off in the direction of the Sand, as if he'd be able to see Hinata running away in the distance.

HInata was on her hands and kneees, panting. Beside her, Ino was trying her hardest to fend off one of their attackers. They were both in bad shape. Ecept for a shuriken lodged in her leg, Hinata had only a few nics and screapes. But Ino was bleeding all over. She had several nast gashes and a kunai sticking out of her shoulder. Hinata struggled to her feet. She was exhausted, despite not having fought all that much. She had been concentrating primarily on defense. But she couldn't stand to see Ino getting hurt over and over to keep her safe. When Ino was thrown to the ground, Hinata stood behind her and used her Shugohakke Rokujyuu Yonshou.

" Shugohakke Rokujyuu Yonshou!" a yonger Hinata yelled.

She braced herself as a swarm of summoned bees attacked. She moved quickly, downing hundreds of bees a minute. Her attackers stood in shock. Naruto watched on in awe. Tehn, just as qucickly as it began, it was over and Hinata was surrounded by thousands of dead bees. Then the woman used another summoning jutsu, this time summoning a giant queen bee. Hinata was unprepared and got thrown to the ground. But she got up. The queen bee charged. Hinata summoned up as much chakra as she could. The bee made contact with Hinata's mesh of chakra and blew back into it's master and her companions. Hinata huffed, exhausted from the huge effort. She fainted. She felt someone catch her and asumed it was Kiba. She looked up. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw Naruto smiling down at her.

_You're amazing! That was an awesome jutsu! You did it! You totally saved us!_

Hinata stopped her justsu, panting heavily.

_I didn't give up then. I can't give up now!_

"Hinata-chan! Look out!" Ino cried.

Hinata turned just in time to see the soul of her attacker's shoe.


	11. Chapter 11

Hinata's head throbbed wildly. She could hear her heart pounding in her head.

_Hinata-chan_

_Naruto-kun?_

_Hinata-chan, wake up!_

_I...I can't..._

_Wake up, Hinata-chan!_

_Help me, Naruto-kun...I...I can't get up._

_Wake up!_

_**Wake up!**_

"Wake up!"

Hinata's eyes fluttered.

"Heh, see she's alright." a strange voice said.

"You need to be more careful, you idiot! She's pregnant, Dammit! Boss doesn't want the baby to get killed!"

The second was a female voice. It was vaugely familiar. Hinata fought against the blackness that threatened to pull her under.

"You monsters! Who the hell do you think you are? Let her go!"

Hinata's heart lept. Ino.

The woman laughed.

"You might want to be a little more concerned about yourself. After all, we don't have orders to keep _you_ alive." she said threateningly.

"Cowards! Untie us and you'll see who should be concerned!"

TenTen!

Hinata tried to move. Then she found that she was tied up too. A burst of laughter came from several different places.

"I don't know, Kanaka, I might want to keep on of them fo rmyself. They're feisty." another man said.

Hinata felt sick.

"I'm gonna kick your ass! Come one, untie me! I'll take you all on, dammit!"

Sakura.

"Enough!" the woman said.

Hinata heard a big thump and Sakura gasp.

"Do whatever you want with the three loudmouths but the old broad and half-pint have gotta go. If we let them live they'll have the entire Hyuuga clan on us in a matter of minutes." the woman said.

Hinata squinted against the sun. Everything was blurry. She could only make out profiles of people. One of them walked toward her and bent down.

"So, sleeping beauty is waking up. Have a nice nap?" the woman taunted.

Hinata blinked hard a couple of times and everything slowly came into focus. The woman from earlier smiled down at her wickedly.

"Bet your ears are ringing, huh? Don't worry, I know a place where you can rest and be nice and comforatable." she said in mock sweetness.

The woman bent over to pick Hinata up.

"Touch her again...and I swear...I'll end you."

Hinata looked behind the woman. Kurenai! She was badly beaten. He hands and feet were tied. She looked at the woman with pure hatred in her eyes. The woman laughed.

"You? Don't be ridiculous! You're nothing more than an injured mother cow." the woman scoffed.

She stood and walked over to Kurenai. Kurenai didn't take her eyes off her. The woman looked at Kurenai's belly. The woman tsked.

"Such a shame. You know you really should have been more carefull. Getting mixed up in this wil cost you,not only your life, but your child's too."

Tears rolled down hinata's cheeks. She struggled to find her voice.

"YOU COLD, HEARTLESS MONSTER! YOU'D KILL AN INNOCENT BABY BEFORE IT EVEN HAS A CHANCE TO LIVE?" Ino screeched desperately.

One of the men guarding the girls kicked INo in the head.

"Be Quiet!"

Ino just shook it off.

"YOU DON'T KNOW WHO THE HELL YOU'RE DEALING WITH! IF YOU TOUCH THAT BABY _**I'LL RIP YOU APART FROM THE INSIDE!"**_ Ino threatened.

The man kicked her again and again.

"Shut the Hell up, Bitch!" he growled.

"Stop it!" Hinata yelled.

Everyone looked at Hinata. She looked around at the Koizumi thugs.

"Please stop! I'll go with you! I'll do whatever you say and I won't try to escape! But leave them alone!" she begged.

"Hinata, no!" TenTen yelled.

The leader smiled.

"What a touching display. The brave Hyuuga heiress begs for her friend's lives." she said sarcastically.

She waved her hand dissmissively.

"Get her outta here, boys. Take any of the others that you want." she said nonchalantly.

One of the men came and picked Hinata up and threw her over his shoulder. Hinata struggled and kicked.

"No, stop! Sensei!" she cired.

Two of the other men picked up Sakura and TenTen. The guy who had kicked Ino stood over her, scowling.

"You're not worth all the racket." he said in dsigust.

"Ino-chan!" Sakura wailed.

"Sensei! Ritorushisutā (Little Sister)! Ino-chan!" Hinata cried.

"Close your eyes, Hinata-sama!" Kurenai yelled.

Hinata shut her eyes tightly. Then she heard the sound of a blade through flesh. Kurenai didn't make a sound.

"_**SENSEI!**_" Hinata screeched.

"Where's Kurenai? What happend?" Shikamaru questioned Hiashi.

Hiashi put his hands up.

"Calm down, Nara-san. She, Hinata-san and a few of the others escaped to the Hidden Sand. They'll contact us as soon as they get there." he said calmly.

Shikamaru relaxed a little bit. He looked around at the trashed wedding scene.

"So, what? They just crashed in here and tried to take Hinata-chan?" he asked.

Hiashi nodded.

"The Koizumi have always been desperate." he stated.

Shikamru looked over at Naruto. He sat looking down at the floor, running his fingers through his hair.

"Hey, are you ok?" he asked.

Naurto didn't budge.

"I'm just worried about her. Every time I'm away from her, I get nervous." he said.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. He went over and lay down next to Naruto.

"Yay think she's in danger er something?" he asked.

Naruto shrugged.

"Not really. I know she's probably fine. It's just...ever since she told me...I'm constantly worried that something's going to go wrong." he replied.

Shikamaru sighed.

"You know, despite what it looks like. Pregnant women can be pretty tough."

He looked out the window.

'I remember right after Sensei died...I was so worried about Yūhi-sama all the time. She got so pissed at me that she threw a chair at my head."

He chuckled.

"After that, I figured she could take care of herself. I didn't stop worrying, but I didn't worry as much."

He looked over at Naruto who was looking at him weirdly.

"IS that supposed to make me feel better/" Naruto asked.

Shikamaru shrugged.

"Not really, I was just saying."

Naruto rolled his eyes.

'You're weird." he mumbled.

He got up and went to Hinata's room. He picked up the veil that she hd left behind. He played with it tenderly.

"We were so close, Hinata-chan." he said sadly.

Hinata cried the entire way to the Koizumi headquarters. Sakura was crying too, but inbetween bouts of tears, she cursed and threatened that she was going to kill everyone once she got free. TenTen withdrew inside herself. She seemed to be too shocked to comprehend anything. When they got to the hideout, TenTen and Sakura were taken away to the basement. Hinata, on the other hand was taken further and further up to a tower room. The man who had carried her untied her and roughly pushed her inside. She looked around.

All things considered it was a very nice room. There was a big purple themed bed, a wooden dresser and matching wardrobe. There was a painted purple vanity in the corner and several pictures of lilacs on the walls. To tierd and sad to even try to figure out where she was, Hinata climbed unto the bed and curled up in a ball.

_Kurenai. Hanbi-chan. Ino-chan. They're all dead because of me._

Fresh tears slid down her checks. She drifted off to sleep with one thing in her mind.

_I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry._


	12. Chapter 12

Hinata woke up and found a glass of milk, a blueberry muffin, a bowl of rice, and some eggs on the bedside table. She remembered that the woman had said that their "boss" wanted her alive, so she ate it without fear. She looked around and saw that there was a clean dress laying on the end of the bed. Hinata picked it up. It was a beautiful dress of white silk that brushed the floor and lavender satin that trimmed the neck and tied around the waist. Reluctantly, Hinata slipped off her wedding dress and put the new dress on. The fact that it fit her perfectly was very disconcerning. It even accommodated her fourteen week baby belly. Hinata got off the bed and went to the door. She tested it. Locked. Her room and clothes were meant for a princess but she was still very much a prisoner. Hinata went back over and sat on the bed again. She thought of Kurenai, Ino, and Hanabi. Tears welled in her eyes again. And what had become of Sakura and TenTen? Were they

still alive? Were they in danger? Hinata drove herself frantic wondering. She jumped when she heard a knock on the door. She wondered why they even bothered.

"Uh...c-come in?" she said timidly.

She was surprised again when timid young woman, not much younger than her, came in, head bowed. She looked around nervously, as if something were going to jump out at her. Then she looked at Hinata,eyes full of fear. She cleared her throat.

"Um...th-there's a bath ready f-for you, m'lady. If you w-want it." She said timidly.

Hinata blinked in surprise, partially because of the offer and partly because of the formality the girl used. She looked at herself. Except for the beautiful new dress, she was quiet dirty.

"Uh, y-yes. I-I suppose a b-bath would be nice." she replied.

The girl nodded and motioned for Hinata to follow her.

"Th-this way, ma'am."

Hinata followed her out, noting the two big men that guarded the door to her room. As they went down a long hallway, Hinata heard people whisper about her.

"Is that the…?"

"I can't believe Hideki-san would…"

"She's pregnant too…"

"Is he going to…"

"He better not…"

Hinata blushed red with embarrassment and anger. Then, one particularly arrogant looking man stepped out in front of her. Hinata jumped and shrunk back from him. He smiled mischievously.

"You must be the little mouse boss has locked up. what a pretty little thing you are." he said in a tone that made Hianta's stomach churn.

The girl who had been escorting Hinata turned around.

"Leave her be, Kinoji-san." she said annoyed and slightly afraid.

Kinojo turned to her, his expression changing to disgust.

"Mind your own business, Kasako-san." he spat.

Kasako tried to grab HInata's hand and pull her away, but instead Kinoji grabbed her arm. Kasako squeaked as he flung her into the wall. He stalked over and pinned her against it, smiling wickedly.

"So, all of a sudden you want to grow a backbone? You're not a true Koizumi, remember that, half-breed." he said viciously.

Kasako cowered and Hinata could see tears in her eyes.

"Leave me alone." she begged quietly, shutting her eyes as if to block him out.

Hinata didn't know what to do. She wanted to intervene but she feared making this tough, aggressive man mad at her.

"I'll thank you to leave her alone, Kinoji-Inu(dog)-san."

Hinata turned around to see the woman from earlier behind her. The woman glared at Kinojo. He looked at her, then back at Kasako. He scoffed and stepped away.

"I don't see why you care." he mumbled as he walked away.

Kasako bowed gratefully.

"Thank-you, Kanaka-sama."

Kanaka waved her hand dismissively.

"Just go back to what you were doing." she said as she walked away.

After Hinata had taken a much needed bath, Kasako escorted her back to her room. They didn't have any more trouble from anyone on the way back. Hinata was grateful for that. She went back into her room and lay down on the bed. Her mind drifted away to Konoha. To Naruto and her interrupted wedding. To Kurenai, Hanabi, and Ino. A tear slid down her cheek. Was anyone aware of their fate?

They wouldn't have been, if Kankuro and Temari hadn't been late to the wedding.

Temari and Kankuro rushed through the trees. Temari looked extremely annoyed.

"We wouldn't be late if you hadn't been messing around."she grumbled for the fifteenth time.

Kankuro rolled his eyes.

"I told you yesterday that I needed to finish work on my puppets. I said that it would take a while." he retorted.

Temari shook her head.

"Three hours is a lot longer then 'a while'. Besides, why couldn't you finish tomorrow?"she replied snidely.

Kankuro opened his mouth to say something but he stopped. He heard the sounds of a battle in the distance.

"Hey, Temari-chan…do you hear that?" he asked.

Temari listened and nodded.m

"What do you think its about?" she wondered.

Kankuro shrugged.

"Think its worth checking out?" he asked.

Temari closed her eyes, thinking hard. She sighed.

"We weren't going to make it anyway." she said.

The two Sand ninja altered their course and headed toward the noise. They stayed a safe distance away. Temari gasped.

"Oh man." Kankuro said in awe.

A handful of kunoichi from Konoha were fighting about twelve enemy ninja and loosing badly. One of them, the blonde loud one, was protecting a visibly pregnant Hinata Hyuuga. So much for going to the wedding. Temari swore.

"So, what're we gonna do?" Kankuro asked.

"I'm thinking, dammit!" Temari said, frustrated.

They were outnumbered and, apparently, way outmatched. Would they be of any help? Or would they simply get their own butts whooped. Before she could make a decision, Hinata received a crippling kick to the head. The older woman screamed and ran to help her, only to be brought down from behind. The blonde girl jumped on the attacker's back and stabbed him repeatedly in the shoulder. He swore loudly and a companion of his grabbed the girl off him and subdued her. The pink hair girl, the girl with the buns and the other Hyuuga fell shortly after. The girls were tied and thrown together. A woman on the enemy team yelled at the man who had kicked Hinata. He argued back and then went over and shook Hinata, telling her to wake up. Temari looked at Kankuro.

"Lets get closer." She whispered.

Kankuro nodded and the two silently dropped to the ground and sneaked as close as they dared. They watched as the enemy ninja taunted and threatened the girls.

"We should do something!" Kankuro said anxiously.

He didn't have a thing for Konoha girls, but these were some of that Naruto kid's friends. Kankuro didn't know him too well, but he had changed Gaara, and Kankuro was grateful for that.

Temari closed her eyes and shook her head.

"There's no way we can take them. We need to wait for an opportune moment. " she said.

Kankuro ground his teeth. They watched helplessly as the Konoha girls were mocked, beaten, and threatened. It aggravated Kankuro and Temari to no end. Things took a turn for the worse when the enemy, apparently growing tired of playing with their prey, took Hinata, pinky, and buns away. The one woman walked toward the jonnin, a wicked grin on her face. That was when Temari realized, with horror, that she was pregnant.

"Surely they wouldn't" she said breathlessly.

The woman pulled a sword from around her waist and positioned it above the jonnin. Two other ninja did the same, hovering over the loud blonde and the young Hyuuga. Temari covered her mouth as their swords came down. She looked on in horror as the ninja left their weapons in their victims and walked away. The Sand ninja sat frozen for a moment. Then they both rushed forward. Temari went over to the pregnant jonnin. She felt her neck for a pulse.

"She's still alive! We need to get her to a hospital!" Temari yelled.

Kankuro nodded.

"The Hyuuga still has a pulse. If the blonde has one, its very weak."

Temari bit her lip. She looked in the direction that the ninja had disappeared.

"One of us should follow them." she said.

She bit the tip of her thumb and wiped a trail of blood on her fan. In a puff of smoke, her summon animal, Kamatari, appeared. Temari pointed in the direction that the ninja had disappeared.

"Follow those ninja. Don't let them out of your sight." she commanded.

He nodded and flew off after them. Temari looked at Kankuro.

"I'll take the Hyuuga and the blonde. Can you handle the jonnin?"

Kankuro nodded. He carefully picked her up, keeping the sword in her back to keep her from bleeding to death. Temari put the small girl on her back and carried the other one in her arms.

Tsunade sighed and leaned against a hospital room door. Shizune came up to her, looking worried.

"Are they alright?" she asked nervously.

Tsunade shook her head.

"Kurenai-san is steadily improving and the baby seems to be unharmed. Hanabi-chan was a little rough, but she's starting to make a comeback." she paused.

"What about Ino-chan?" Shizune persisted.

Tsunade looked down at the floor.

"It doesn't look good." she said gravely.

Shizune covered her mouth with her hand.

"You mean?"she said breathlessly.

Tsunade sighed.

"She's teetering on the edge. I've done everything I can. It could go either way. We'll know for sure in the morning." She said, defeated.


	13. Chapter 13

Tears streamed down Naruto's face.

"You've got to be kidding me. When will this end?" he said hopelessly.

Tsunade shook her head.

"Maybe never. Who knows. This clan is apparently pretty desperate and malicious." she said.

Naruto grabbed the chair he was sitting on and threw it into the wall angrily. He was shaking violently.

"Dammit! Why can't they just leave her alone? She hasn't done anything!" He screamed angrily.

Tsunade was taken aback a bit. She stood up.

"Naruto! Calm down!" She begged.

Naruto growled and pulled his hands roughly through his hair. He sighed and put his hands at his sides.

"So what's the plan?" He asked, looking at the ground.

Tsunade sat back down.

"Well, naturally we need to send some kind of rescue team after them."

Naruto nodded.

"I'm in."He said determinedly

Tsunade chuckled.

"I kinda figured." She said.

"We're going too."

Tsunade looked past Naruto. Kiba, Shino, and Neji stood in the doorway to her office. Kiba stepped forward.

"We're going after her." He repeated.

Tsunade nodded.

"It seems that your team has been made then." She said.

She had expected these boys to step up.

"Count us in too."

Tsunade looked past the Konoha boys. Kankuro and Temari stood behind the group of volunteers. Tsunade blinked in surprise.

"I see."

She put her elbows on her desk and laced her fingers in front of her face.

"I don't have any authority to assign you to this mission." she said plainly.

"We've already contacted Gaara-kun. He gave us permission to help in any way we could." Temari reported.

Naruto smiled gratefully at his friends. Tsunade chortled.

"Hinata-sama would he surprised to see how many people care about her." She commented.

She looked at Naruto.

"Alright, that makes two teams. I'll just have to assign you two jonnin then you'll be able to get going." She said.

"Well I suppose I'll have to go to keep tabs on Naruto-kun." Kakashi said from the window.

Tsunade turned to look at him, annoyed.

"Dammit, don't I have any control over who's in my office anymore?" she said disgruntled.

Kakashi jumped down and shrugged nonchalantly, which ticked her off even more. She sighed and leaned back in her chair. She waved her hand dismissively.

"Fine, Kakashi-san is assigned Naruto-kun, Kiba-kun, and Shino-kun. Neji-san, Temari-san, and Kankuro-san will form a temporary Team Shikamaru. You can leave whenever." she said.

Four days. Four days dragged on forever. Each was similar to the first. Hinata woke to a ready made breakfast and a new custom-fit dress. Then Kasako would escort her to a bath and back and attend to her needs for the rest of the day. She spent all day locked in her room. She spent most of her time trying to get to know Kasako but, apparently, either the girl had been told not to communicate with her or she was even more shy than Hinata had once been. She never spoke much above a whisper. In fact, the loudest she had ever been was when she stood up to Kinoji on that first day. That was another thing. Every day, they would pass Kinoji in the hallway. He would mess with Kasako. He would trip her or spit at her. One day he pretended that he had been talking about her and when she came near, he laughed as if she had something on her face. Hinata felt sorry for Kasako. She seemed to be the underdog here.

On the fifth day, something completely unexpected happened. It started out a s a normal day. Hinata and Kasako were sitting in Hinata's room. Hinata sat on the bed and Kasako stood in the corner by the door, waiting to be called on. She was looking down at the floor, seemingly deep in thought. Then there was a loud pounding on the door. Kasako jumped and quickly opened the door. Kanaka stepped in. She glanced at Hinata then at Kasako.

"Boss wants to see her. Tonight. For dinner. Can you manage that?" she said curtly.

Kasako nodded.

"She'll need a gown." she commented

"We're having one made right now. It will be here a half hour before dinner. Make sure she's ready by then." Kanaka replied.

Then she left just as abruptly as she came. Kasako looked at the door, playing with her hands nervously. She sighed.

"I could use a little help." she mumbled to herself.

Hinata got up and walked over to her.

"W-why does he want to have dinner with me?" she asked.

Kasako shook her head.

"I don't know." she replied quietly.

She looked at Hinata.

"But we need to make sure you're ready."

She put her finger to her lips on looked at the floor.

"I wonder if it would be alright." she mumbled under hr breath.

Hinata looked at her curiously.

"What?"

Kasako jumped as if Hinata had startled her.

"Well, I was thinking about taking you down to the hot springs. It would be the perfect place to clean up and get you looking your best." she replied.

She thought about it a bit more.

"Well, they asked me to get you ready so that's what I intend to do." she said finally.

Nobody tried to stop them as they made their way down the winding staircase. Hinata was used to people talking about her by now. She felt a shiver go up her spine when they passed by Kinoji. He didn't attempt any of his usual antics as Kasako passed. Hinata sighed in relief. Kasako led Hinata outside to a small building. The hot spring was wonderful. Hinata was treated like a princess. She soaked in the spring, was massaged and pampered, and given the best beauty treatments. Afterward, they went back up to her room. When Kasako opened the door, Hinata gasped in surprise. In the room was a glass display case filled with the most spectacular jewels Hinata had ever seen and, hanging up next to it, was a dress of equally stunning quality. (Use your imagination.)

As Kasako was helping Hinata into the dress, her hand came to rest on Hinata's baby bump. Her eyes changed from their regular nervousness to a look of wonder. Hinata smiled knowingly.

"What's it like?" Kasako asked quietly.

"Being pregnant?" Hinata asked.

Kasako shook her head. Hinata looked at her curiously.

"Well then, what?"

Kasako looked up at Hinata. Her eyes were filled with sorrow and longing.

"What is it like...to be loved?" she asked in a broken voice.

Hinata's heart broke. Perhaps it was her motherly instinct kicking in or her own sympathetic heart overflowing with compassion. She smiled sadly.

"Its…indescribable. Its...scary and...wonderful...and it very well could be the best and the hardest thing about life."

Kasako looked at her curiously.

"I've never heard it put that way before. Most people just say it's wonderful" She said.

Hinata nodded.

"It is, but it's also terrifying, emotional, uncontrollable, and true love is nearly impossible to find. It's not easy to be in love. It means that someone has control of your heart. They can hurt you so badly, but you have to trust that they'll take care of you. And that can be so hard sometimes."

Tears streamed down Hinata's cheeks.

"Its even harder when you're away from eachother. It tears you apart inside." She said, her voice catching.

Kasako's tears spattered on the ground. She looked at Hinata, the invisible barrier that had always been between them suddenly shattered.

"So then...all this time...you've been suffering?" she asked, lip quivering.

Hinata nodded.

Kasako fished a cloth out of her pocket and offered it to Hinata, who gratefully accepted it. Hinata gently dabbed away her tears. She smiled at Kasako and put a hand on her cheek. Kasako flinched but didn't pull away. She looked at Hinata trustingly. Hinata took the cloth and dabbed away Kasako's tears.

"But you're suffering too, arent you? And I know how much more painful suffering can be when you're alone." she said in a motherly tone.

Kasako stared at Hinata with child-like wonder. She understood her? She knew how she felt? Howcould that be? Boht girls jumpped when there was a loud knock on the door.

"Dinner's ready! Hurry up! The boss is waiting!" Kanaka sreeched from the other side of the door.


	14. Chapter 14

"There seems to be a big to-do going on over there. Everyone's rushing around and setting up a big feast." Neji reported.

Shikamaru nodded.

"Can you see any of the girls?" He asked.

Neji looked further and nodded.

"Sakura-chan and TenTen-kun are deep down in the basement." He said.

He clenched his fist, seeing TenTen and Sakura huddled in a corner. Their faces were dirty and they were scantly dressed. Neji could see several bruises on their arms and legs. He ground his teeth when TenTen turned her head and he saw her left eye was swollen and discolored.

"They're in very bad shape." He said through his teeth.

"What about Hinata-chan?" Naruto said fiercely.

Neji shook his head to clear it and continued scanning the hideout. Then he saw her. She was coming down a long flight of stairs. She looked well. Better than well, actually. She was gorgeous, all dressed up in a beautiful gown that accented her petite frame perfectly.

"She's fine. It would seem that she's what all the fuss is about." He said.

Naruto let out a sigh. She was safe, that was all that mattered.

"So, what's the plan?" Temari asked.

Kakashi closed his eyes and rubbed his chin in thought.

"Hm, well a frontal assault seems like it wouldn't get us anywhere. It should be easy enough to sneak down and get to Sakura-chan and TenTen-kun. The question is: how do we get Hinata-chan out of there without calling attention to ourselves?" He pondered.

He looked at Shikamaru.

"You got anything?" he asked, knowing his brain was always hard at work.

Shikamaru shrugged.

"If we could get hold of a maid outfit, Temari-chan could-OW!"

Temari whacked him up-side the head.

"Try again!" She said, annoyed.

Shikamaru rubbed his head.

"Actually, that's not a bad idea." Kakashi said.

Temari looked at him horrified.

"Are you serious? This is no time for sexual harassment!" She hissed.

Kakashi put his hands up defensively and tried to push the image of Temari in a French maid costume out of his mind.

"Listen. If you dress like a servant, you can sneak in undetected and get closer to Hinata-chan than any of us could." He explained.

Temari grimmaced.

"Is that the ONLY thing you can think of?" She asked.

Shikamaru shrugged.

"Depends, how long do you want to spend trying to get her out? Two weeks or three months?" He asked.

Naruto looked at Temari pleadingly. She sighed.

"Alright, alright. I 'll do it. " she said finally.

Hinata carefully made her way down the miles of stairs to the dinning room. She gasped when she saw the elaborate set up. It looked like twenty or more people were dinning instead of just "the boss" and herself. Speaking of which, where was her host?

"This way, Hyuuga-sama." Kasako said, leading her into the room.

Hinata followed, marveling at spread. She recognised most of the dishes, but some she had never seen before. She sincerely hoped she wasn't expected to try everything. Kasako sat her to the left of the head of the table. She sat down and looked up at Kasako.

"I suppose, you won't be staying?" Hinata asked nervously.

Kasako shook her head.

"The only servants allowed to attend will be the ones serving you food." she said with a sad smile.

Kasako ooked around.

"Hidkai-san should be out soon. I have to go." she said.

She looked at Hinata and smiled sympathetically.

"See you later, I suppose." she said before going off.

Kasako Went out of the room and down the hall, heading for her room. Kinoji stopped her. he grabbed her arm and roughly pulled her outside. He cupped his hand over her mouth just as she was about to scream. Tears sprung from her eyes.

"No duties to perform and no big sister to protect you. " Kinoji gloated gleefully.

He dragged her over to a dark, queit spot at the back of the hideout and threw her to the ground. She scrambld to try and get away from him. He caught her by the hair and slammed her face into the ground.

"That's right, little mouse, run! Run as fast as you can! You'll never get away from the mean, nasty cat!" he taunted.

"Please, please let me go! Leave me alone! Please!" Kasako begged.

Kinoji threw his head back and tore at her clothes. She screamed, knowing it was nearly impossible for anyone to hear her. But someone did. A kunai appeared on Kinoji's throat.

"Get off her and back away slowly." a strange blonde girl ordered him.

Kinoji gulped and slowly got off of Kasako. The foreign girl backed him up untill he was a few feet away. Then, without warning, three men appeared out of nowhere and captured him. Kasako didn't know if she sould stand and fight or run. She lay on the ground, too shocked to do either. When Kinoji was safely tied up, the blonde girl looked at Kasako.

"You're lucky we were looking for an opportunity like this." she said.

Kasako, thinking clearly again, got up and tried to run away. Her path was blocked by a big blonde man. He put his hands up.

"It's alright, we're not going to hurt you." he said gently.

Kasako looked at him, scared.

"Wh-Wh-Who are y-you? W-W-What do you w-want?" she asked timidly.

He put his hand on his chest.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. " he said.

Kasako's eyes widened. Hinata's fiance.

"And, to put it bluntly, we want your clothes." the blonde girl said from behind.

Kasako turned and looked at her, horrified.

"W-W-What?" she asked, shocked.

The girl shook her head.

"Trust me, it's not what you think. We just need a disguise." she said.

The girl stepped closer to her. Kasako put her hands up.

"Wait! I can help you!" she said desprately.

The girl rolled her eyes and kept coming. Naruto put his hand out to stop her.

"Wait, Temari-chan." he said.

Temari looked at him angrily.

"What's the matter?" she asked, annoyed.

"Let her tell us how she can help us." he said calmly.

Kasako looked at him gratefully. Temari humphed. She looed at Kasako.

"How can yo help us?" she asked.

"You're here to rescue Hinata-sama, aren't you?"

Naruto looked at Kasako, a light in his eyes.

"Do you know her, then?" he asked hopefully.

Kasako nodded.

"I was put in charge of taking care of her. I can get to her and tell her you're here. I can help her escape." she explained.

"Wait a minute!" Temari said.

She stepped forward and towered over Kasako threateningly.

"How do we know you're telling the truth? You could just be leading us into a trap." she questioned.

Kasako gulped. She looked past Temari at Naruto.

"Hyuuga-sama thinks about you all the time. At night, she tosses and turns with nightmares about being separated from you forever. She's going to have your twins. Michiko for a girl and Masashi for a boy." she said.

A tear rolled down Naruto's cheek.

"She's telling the truth, Temari-chan. Leave her alone." he said seriously.


	15. Chapter 15

"It's simple. If you think about it I'm sure you'd come to the same conclusion I have. You will stay here. Protected. Out of harms way. With my word that not a soul will touch you without severe consequences. When the time comes, you will have the child here. If it is a boy, he will be raised as a Koizumi. He will be brought up to beleive that your family, the Hyuuga's, killed his father because he was Koizumi. And you will remain safe, able to be with your child as long as you never tell him the truth. But, if the baby is a girl, she will be given to one of my servants to raise. As for you, my dear, you will be sent back to your family. Dead, of cousre."

HIdekai laughed and looked at Hinata.

"If I were you, I'd start praying for a boy." he joked.

Hinata sat ridged in her chair. She hadn't touched a bite of the feast that had been set before her. She was too busy listening to all the horrible things this man had in store for her. She felt sick. Her head spun and she wanted to cry. But she had to be strong. She had to act like a Hyuuga now. Strong, calculated, and emotionless.

"And what if I have both?" she said emotionlessly.

Hidekai stopped in the middle of his drink. He set his cup down and stroked his chin.

"Easy. We'd take the boy and kill you and the girl." Kanaka said swiftly.

Hinata looked at the woman. She sat at Hidekai's right side. A malicious grin spread across her face as she looked at Hinata. Hidekai looked at Kanaka curiously.

"Why kill the girl child?" he questioned.

Kanaka took a bite of her food, chewed, and swallowed.

"Simple. Even if we separate them, the boy and girl will inevitably meet someday. When they find out that they are twins they will immeadiately begin to question and doubt everything we tell them. So, you see, it's only in our best interests." she said, as if she were talking about the weather instead of a child's life.

HIdekai nodded.

"Yes, I see your point. But what about Hyuuga-sama? Why would she have to be killed?"

Kanaka smirked and looked Hinata with a vicious twinkle in her eyes.

"For bearing a girl." she said slyly.

Hidekai erupted in laughter. Hinata nearly threw up. This woman had it out for her, for one reason of another. Hidekai looked at Hinata. She tried to keep her face as emotionless as possible. Hidekai chuckled.

"You're not a Hyuuga, my dear. I can see the fear in your eyes. Your face is stone, but your eyes give you away. " he said.

Kanako humphed.

"No wonder her father disowned her before he died. She's a pathetic excuse for a ninja, let alone a Hyuuga." she mumbled.

Hinata looked down at her plate. She wanted nothing more than to break down and cry. But now it wasn't out of fear. She was angry. Every time Kanaka opened her mouth, Hinata felt more and more furious. Hideaki chortled.

"Easy, my pet. Remember, she's our guest. We will treat her as such untill the proper time." he said to Kanaka.

Hinata was overwhelmingly thankful when the meal was over. She couldn't get up to her room fast enough . The 14x14 foot room that had been driving her mad for the past five days now seemed like a shelter. She leaned against the door and put her hand on her stomach. Michiko. Her little girl. What would truly happen if Hinata never escaped from this place? Would such a fate befall her dear child? Hinata was beyond the point of bursting into tears. She slumped down and burried her head in her hands. An image of Kanaka, cackling wickedly, popped into her head. Hinata's head popped up and she gasped. She was trembling all over. She heard someone knock on the door.

"Hyuuga-sama, it's Kasako." Kasako said from behind the door.

Hinata struggled to her feet and stepped away from the door.

"C-Come in." she said quietly.

Kasako came and looked at Hinata. She rushed over to her.

"Hinata-sama, what's wrong?" she asked, concerned.

Hinata shied away instinctively.

"S-Such h-horrible things. He s-said such h-h-horibble thing to m-m-me." she said in a shaky voice.

Kasako looked at Hinata in disbelief. She couldn't believe that she was looking at the same strong, kind, loving person she had talked to just an hour before. She helped Hinata over to the bed.

"I-I'm sorry, K-Kasako-chan b-b-but I've gotta get out of h-here." Hinata whispered.

Kasako nodded.

"Actually, I have something for you." She replied.

She reached down her shirt and pulled something out of it. She held it out to Hinata and opened her hand. Hinata couldn't believe her eyes. There, in Kasako's hand, was a Konoha head protector. Tears welled in Hinata's eyes. She smiled at Kasako.

"You saw him?" She asked.

Kasako nodded, tears forming in her own eyes. Hinata carefully took the headband from Kasako and put it to her cheek. She could almost feel Naruto beside her. Her heart reignited with hope.

"Will you help me?" She asked Kasako.

Kasako smiled slyly.

"You mean like sneak the guards a few bottles of Sake and show you a secret passage to the woods under the cover of night?" she said.

Hinata threw her arms around Kasako. She was taken aback by the gesture, but wrapped her arms around Hinata in return.

"I'll never forget you, Hinata-sama. You've been kinder to me than anyone I've ever met." She said gratefully.

Hinata pulled away and put her hands on Kasako's shoulders.

"Then, come with me. Come away from this terrible place. I'm sure you'd be accepted in Konoha." she encouraged.

Kasako's eyes lit up.

"You mean it? Do you really want me to come with you?" she asked joyfully.

Hinata nodded. This time, Kasako threw her arms around Hinata. Hinata hugged her close.

"Stay close. It's easy to get lost in here." Kasako whispered as she led Hinata through an unfamiliar part of the hideout.

Hinata took her advice to heart and stayed on her heels. The whole place was eerily quiet.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

Hinata and Kasako gasped and turned around. Hinata was mortified to see Kanaka standing in front of her. Kanaka gave her a wicked grin.

"What's the matter, Hyuuga-sama? Are you not comfortable in you cushy tower room?" She asked, her voice dripping with venom.

Kasako stepped around Hinata and stood between her and Kanaka. She spread her arms out.

"Leave her alone, Kanaka-sama. You don't want her here anyway. " Kasako said boldly.

Hinata thought she saw Kanaka's eye twitch.

"It doesn't matter what I want and you know it. Hidekai-san wants her here an.d I intend to keep her here until he decides otherwise." She said threateningly.

"Hinata-sama, follow this hall all the way down and to the left. In the third room on the right there is a closet with a secret passage in it." Kasako said over her shoulder.

Hinata looked at her, confused. Then she understood. She put her hand on her shoulder.

"No, you're coming with me, remember?" she said desperately.

She saw a tear slowly roll down Kasako's cheek.

"You'd better hurry." she said in a broken voice.

Before Hinata could do or say anything, Kasako pulled a dagger out of her sleeve and lunged for Kanaka. In the blink of an eye Kanaka snapped Kasako's wrist back and knocked her to the ground, sending the dagger sliding across the floor. Kasako rubbed her wrist.

"Run, Hinata-sama!" She cried.

Tears in her eyes, Hinata turned and ran down the hall. Kasako quickly got up and lunged for Kanaka again. Kanaka grabbed her wrist and twisted her arm around until it snapped. Kasako gasped in pain. She kicked at Kanaka's legs. Kanaka nimbly leaped out of the way. She pulled grabbed the dagger off the floor and cut a big gash across Kasako's leg. Kasako grimaced, but kept coming. If she couldn't escape with Hinata, she would give her the best chance she could. Kanaka slashed at Kasako furiously. Kasako kept trying. Finally, Kanaka let out and aggravated growl. She grabbed Kasako's shoulder and drove the dagger into her heart. Kasako's eyes widened and she coughed up blood. Kanaka leaned in and whispered in her ear.

"You're nothing. You were nothing from the beginning and your death will be nothing too." she hissed.

Kasako slowly slid to the floor.

"Maybe so...but...if my insignificant life save her...then I'll have finally done something worthwhile..." she said on her knees, looking at the ground.

She looked up at Kanaka.

"But you...you will always be a vile, desperate, diseased girl."

Kanako growled again and kicked Kasako down.

"Die already! Shrivel and die you worthless bitch!" She cried.

Kasako smiled and shut her eyes.

"I love you too...Onee-sama..."


	16. Chapter 16

Hinata kept going. She heard the sounds of the fight behind her and she tried to block it out.

"Arigato, Kasako-chan. Gomenasai." She said as she ran.

She found the room that Kasako had told her about and used her Byakugan to quickly find the secret passage.

Naruto paced back and forth frantically in front of the passage exit.

Kasashi read "Come, Come Paradise" by the moonlight. Kiba played a half-hearted game of fetch with Akamaru. Shino sat and watched the exit intently. Neji, Temari, Kankuro, and Shikamaru had gone to get TenTen and Sakura. Kakashi's team would meet them at a designated spot in the woods later on. For now, they waited on Kasako to bring Hinata out. Kiba's head popped up suddenly and he looked at the exit.

"She's coming!" he said excitedly.

Naruto ran over and opened the door. A teary-eyed Hinata stumbled into the moonlight. Naruto scooped her up in his arms and darted into the woods. The others quickly followed. Hinata wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck and cried into his shoulder. Tears streamed down his face onto her arm.

Even after they stopped, Hinata and Naruto never let go of eachother. She bawled and he quietly cried. When she had calmed down a bit, she told them about her terrifying dinner with Hidekai and about Kasako's friendship and sacrifice. They told her about Kurenai and Hanabi's recoveries and of Ino's delicate condition. Hinata cried some more. Shikamaru and his team showed up around dawn. There was hugging and crying all around. Sakura, Naruto, and Kiba threw a few curses in the too, for good measure. Then, suddenly, Neji turned to look behind them.

"We have a pursuer." He said, on edge.

Hinata didn't have to look to know who it was.

"Kanaka." She whispered.

She trembled slightly and Naruto hugged her closer. Kanaka walked slowly into their view. She looked directly at Hinata. Naruto pushed Hinata behind him and glared at Kanaka. All of the boys and Temari formed a wall between Kanaka and the girls. Sakura and TenTen had evidently met Kanaka on several occasions. Their eyes widened and they took a step back. Hinata stood in front of them protectively. Kanaka laughed sadistically.

"Obviously I'm not going to take on all of you. I came with a promise." She said.

She pointed at Naruto and gave him a twisted smiled. She walked towards him.

"You can hide her away in the depths of the earth. You can travel for years to some far off land. But no matter where you go or what you do I promise you this:"

She was in Naruto's face now. She lowered her voice to a whisper.

"I will hunt her down until the day I die. And, if I ever get my hands on her again, I will rip her throat out with my bare hands." she hissed.

Naruto growled.

"If you so much as look at her again, I'll tear you apart bit by bit." He swore.

Kanaka humphed. She clapped her hands and vanished in a puff of smoke.

"She wanted to fight. That clone had a large amount of chakra in it. I wonder what deterred her?" Neji stated.

After the teams arrived back there was a teary and joyful welcome from Shizune. Tsunade pretended to wave it off, telling everyone that she knew everything would turn out alright.

Afterward, Naruto brought Hinata to his apartment for some much needed TLC. As soon as they shut the door,they started peeling eachother's clothes off. Naruto ran his hand across Hinata's shoulders, down her back and brought them around to rest on her baby bump. He knelled down and kissed the very top of her tummy. Hinata ran her fingers through Naruto's hair. He stood up and kissed her passionately. He pulled away gently and smiled down at her.

"I missed you so much." he said tenderly.

She reached up and kissed him softly.

"I missed you more." She whispered.

The next morning, they went to the hospital to check on Kurenai, Hanabi, and Ino. Kurenai and Hanabi were awake and alert now, but both needed to stay at the hospital for a few more weeks so their wounds could heal.

"At this rate, I'll get out of the hospital just in time to go back in and have my baby!" Kurenai joked.

Hinata went to see Ino by herself (Naruto was in desperate need of Ramen). She went in and nearly started crying again. Ino was hooked up to so many different machines that she looked like she was part robot. Hinata pulled up a chair beside her bed. She put her hand over Ino's gently. To her surprise, a small smile twitched at the corner of Ino's mouth. Tsunade had said Ino might be able to hear and understand but not respond to anything. Hinata decided to try to talk to her.

"Hello, Ino-chan. It's me, Hinata-chan…I…I want to say that I'm sorry…I'm sorry that you got hurt because of me…"

She looked at Ino's lifeless face. A tear rolled down her cheek.

"Please…fight Ino. Fight to stay alive." she begged quietly.

Hinata wanted to wait until after Hanabi and Kurenai got out of the hospital to get married. Naruto, though reluctant, agreed and the two spent their time together as much as possible. Sakura and TenTen were checked into the hospital. They didn't have any major injuries so they were in and out in a day. They didn't talk to anybody about what happened to them after they were captured. TenTen only said that was infinately glad to be home. Sakura didn't speak to anybody. She didn't look anybody in the eye. The only person she felt comfortable around for a time was TenTen. Then, about three weeks later, she was completely back to normal. She acted as if nothing had happened at all. The only difference was that she spent quite a bit more time with TenTen.

Finally, five weeks after returning to Konoha, Hinata and Naruto were married. It wasn't as big and fancy as the first one; just a small group of their close friends and relatives. Tsunade married them (by the power vested in her as Hokage) and then they had a bigger reception. Nearly all of Konoha gathered to congradulate them. Temari and Kankuro came as well, this time they brought Gaara with them. Everyone was happy for them and wished them well. Their honeymoon was nothing special, just a quiet evening in Naruto's appartment. Life was slow and easy afterwards. Naruto opted out of as many missions as he could to stay home and take care of Hinata. He got a part time job at the Ramen shop and started saving up money for baby supplies. Hinata continued her regular visits to Tsunade and the news was consistently good. Two big, beautiful, healthy babies.

Then, the big day came. Hinata burst into the appartment.

"Kurenai-sensei just went into labor! " she said excitedly.


	17. Chapter 17

Kurenai screamed at the top of her lungs.

"GET THIS THING OUT OF ME!" she yelled at Tsunade.

Tsunade rolled her eyes.

"We're working on it. Just breath. Breath. Breath. Alright now push!"

Kurenai let out another cry of pain. Shikamaru sqeezed her hand.

"You're doing good, Yuhi-sama." he encouraged.

Kurenai panted and looked up at the ceiling.

"Really? And how can you tell?" she chided sarcastically.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"You're making sarcatic remarks and yelling. I'd say everything's pretty much normal." he said.

Kurenai gave his hand an extra hard sqeeze.

Hinata, Naruto, and Choji sat in the waiting room. Kiba didn't sit, he paced. As if he were going to be a father.

"Man, I can't stand this. How long is this going to take? Oh man, what if something's wrong? " he muttered.

Naruto laughed.

"You sound like an old man!" he jeered.

Kiba glarred at Naruto.

"She's my sensei, I worry about her!" he said defensively.

Choji laughed too.

"Yeah, she's your sensei, not your wife. So why're you pacing around like a new dad?" he joked.

Kiba growled and made a fist at Choji. Hinata came over and put her hand on Kiba shoulder.

"Kiba-kun, it's alright. Everything's going to be fine, you'll see." she said comfortingly.

Kiba rubbed the back of his neck.

"Yeah, I know you're right, Hinata-chan. I'm just worried is all." he said sheepishly.

Hinata smiled at him. she gently grabbed his elbow and led him over to the seat next to her.

"I know, but for now just sit down and try to relax." she encourage.

Kurenai's labor lasted at total of fourteen hours. Kiba, Naruto, Hinata, and Choji all took shifts waiting while the others ate or slept. Finally, Tsunade came out wiping her hands on a towel. She had a big smile on her face as she looked at the group.

"It's a healthy, loud baby boy." she said.

Kiba jumped in the air and whooped.

"Yeah! Alright! A little bro!" he said excitedly.

Akamaru plowed Kiba over and licked his face. Everyone laughed but Tsunade.

"Get that mutt outta here. This is a hospital, not a vet clinic." she said annoyed.

They were able to go in and see Kurenai two at a time. Chijo and Kiba let Naruto and Hinata go in first. Shikamaru came out and slept in the waitng room for a while. Supervising the birth of a baby took way too much energy. Kurenai was exhausted, but happy. She craddled the baby, warpped in a blue blanket, in her arms and stared at it lovingly.

"What are you going to name him, sensei?" Hinata asked.

Kurenai smiled.

"Hiruzen, after his grandfather." she said sweetly.

She closed her eyes and sighed.

"I can only hope that he becomes as kind and wise as his namesake." she commented.

She looked up at the ceiling and smiled.

"What do you think? Is he good enough for that name?" she asked.

Naruto looked at her weirdly.

"Who's she talking to?" he whispered to Hinata.

Hinata looked at the floor, sadly.

"Asuma-sensei." she said quietly.

Then Naruto remembered.

"Oh...right."

After leaving the hospital, naruto noticed that Hinata acted very melancholy. She kept her head down and rubbed her growing baby bump absently. Just when Naruto was about to ask her what was wrong, she spoke.

"Naruto-kun...that day...when Kanaka-san followed us. What did she say to you?" she asked.

naruto looked at her.

"You didn't hear?"

She shook her head.

"I was too far away."

Naruto looked at the sky.

"Ah, she was just talking shit. Nothing important." he lied.

Hinata stopped. Naruto looked back at her.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked.

"What did she say, Naruto-kun?" she asked flatly.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

"She was just trash-talking. You know, making lame threats and all. It wasn't a big deal." he said.

Hinata didn't budge.

"She's going to try and come for me, isn't she?"

Naruto was taken aback. He sighed.

"Something like that." he muttered.

He walked back to her and put his hands on her shoulder.

"But, listen, I'm not going to let that happen. I'll protect you, Hinata-chan. I'll-"

"For how long?" Hinata said quietly.

Naruto looked at her confused.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

Hinata looked up at him, tears streaming down her face.

"How long, Naruto-kun? How long will you be around?" she asked despratedly.

Naruto held her tighter.

"Hinata-chan, I'm not leaving you. I would never-"

"I know that, Naruto-kun! I know that you aren't going to leave me!" she said, breaking away from him.

She took a step back.

"But how long will you be around to take care of me? How long...will you live?" she said in a broken voice.

Naruto opened his mouth to answer, but he stopped. Then he tried again.

"Hinata-chan...I..."

He rubbed the back of his and sighed.

"I don't know. " he said finally.

Hinata nodded.

"That's right, you don't know. No one knows." she said sadly.

She took a step toward him.

"Naruto-kun, you want to become Hokage. And a Hokage, if he is called upon to do so, must sacrifice his _life _for the village." she stressed.

Naruto looked at her, pained.

"Hinata-chan, I..."

He didn't know what to say. She was right, after all. The Third had died trying to stop Orochimaru from destroying the villages. The First, Second, and Fourth had similar fates as well. Even Tsunade might someday be called on to put her life on the line for the village. The life of a Hokage was known to be brief. Hinata put her hand on Naruto's chest.

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. I got a little carried away. Let's just go home. " she said with a small smile.

Naruto was going to protest, but he remained quiet. Her outburst was probably a product of her pregnancy. Still, he had a gut feeling that something was wrong. He would ask her about it later. When they got home, Hinata lay down on the bed. She grimaced and put her hand on her stomach. Then she gasped in pain.

Naruto rushed to her side.

"What is it, Hinata-chan? What's wrong?" He asked, concerned.

Her brow furrowed.

"I-I don't know." She said in a pained voice.

She gasped and doubled over.

"Naruto-kun, I need to get to the hospital." She gasped.

Naruto's jaw dropped.

"You don't think you're going into labor, do you? You're not due for another three months or so!" He said panicked.

Hinata cried out.

"I don't know but something's happening!" She cried.

Naruto quickly picked her up and rushed out of the apartment.

"Don't worry, I'll get you to Tsunade-sama! She'll know what to do!"

"Well the good news is that she's not going into labor yet. The bad news is that the premature contractions tore her up a little." Tsunade said as she came out of Hinata's room.

Naruto looked worried.

"Well, is she going alright?" He asked nervously.

Tsunade nodded.

"Yes, she just needs a few days of strict bed rest and she should be back to normal." she said.

Naruto sighed in releif.

"That's good." he said.

"But, she needs to be careful. Another incedent like this could really do some damage. not to mention stress out her heart." she commented.

Naruto nodded.

"Got it. From now on, I'll make sure she takes it easy." he said, determined.


	18. Special: Kanaka's Inner Demons!

A dark room in the middle of the Koizumi headquarters. Bare except for a bed, a desk, and several thousand pieces of paper with pictures scrawled on them taped to the walls. A lone figure sat at the desk, frantically scribbling away. Images flashing through her mind. A girl with blank, pale eyes. Black hair. Lavender. Another girl. Frail, but determined. A flash of red. A drop of blood. Onee-sama. A tear. Now a man. Cruel. Heartless. An evil grin. The slash of a sword. A terrifying shriek. The cry of a baby.

This was Kanaka's sanctuary. The only place in the world where she truly felt herself. Her real self. Not the sane, calm self that she took on day in and day out, trying desperately not to crack. The self that struck fear into the hearts of all who knew her. All but one. One man would never fear her, no matter how twisted she became. He was the only one in the world who did, or ever would, understand her. The object of her unrelenting affection and her undying insanity. Her own husband, his brother, had not even been able to see past the blockade she put up. But this man did instantly. She remembered the sheer wonder she had felt when she first discovered that he could penetrate through the charade and see the demons that tormented her soul.

Her whole life, from the time she was a baby, she had locked away her secret desires. Her lust for bloodshed. Her ears burning to her the tormented screams of others. Her eyes longing to see deep crimson rivers. Her heart racing every time she picked up anything sharp or dangerous. Such things were frowned upon. She could not display such violent tendencies around normal people. But him. He understood. What's more, he loved her for it. Her utter disregard for life dove him mad. At one point, way back in their childhood, they were a nearly inseparable pair. But he was the future head of the family. And she was a hated halfling. The cursed spawn of two foolish lovers . Her father, a no account thief that had slipped in and defiled the Koizumi bloodline. Her mother, the foolish wretch who allowed her birthright to be ripped from her bloodline. The future head of the prestigious clan could not easily associate with such a pathetic low-born creature. So, in an effort to sever their relationship completely, she was given to the brother.

But the brother died, leaving the doorway to her true love wide open once again. For a brief, but glorious period, she was his. She didn't have to hide anything. She opened herself up to him completely. And he gorged himself on her. They were both blissfully intoxicated by each other. But, just as quickly as happiness arrived, it was torn away from her. A new prize. A clean, pure, beautiful being. No reckless desire. No passionate longing. A frail, timid thing. A pretty, fair thing. Something forbidden. Even more forbidden than Kanaka. He grew restless. This far away beauty became and obsession for him. Nothing could sway his mind from her. Nothing at all. It became his soul desire to posses this thing. To have. To hold. To corrupt. To destroy.

So, just as it was his soul desire to posses, it became her desire to comply. She would go to hell and back for him. Sell her soul for him. If it meant seeing a smile on his face, she would do absolutely anything. She went after his prize for him. She was desperate for his affection. Des prate, but not delirious. She planned carefully and took her time. She used the utmost care and delicacy. She made his obsession her own. She watched, waited, and studied. And then, an opportunity. Too perfect to let pass. A wedding. Kanaka was filed with glee at the delicious irony of it all. A beautiful, blushing bride. A magical garden wedding. And then, blood. Terrified shrieks. A chase. Her twisted, sadistic heart took such pleasure in it all. The only unfortunate thing about it all was how quickly it ended. It was too easy. A quick rush of joy and it was all over. No matter. Her corrupted nature would be satisfied soon enough. He would be so pleased with her, he might even forget about the forbidden treasure she brought. Even demons could wish.

Elated, he slaked her lust. For a little while anyway. Even when her tore away, he tried to make sure her needs were met. Two new toys. To tide her over until he got over his boyish obsession, at least. For a while, she took pleasure in playing with them. The one had an especially sharp tongue and was fun to bait. But what started as playful teasing quickly turned into malicious tormenting. And soon, it wasn't fun anymore. Hearing him go on and on every night about his little baby doll drove her wild. Hatred bubbled up inside her. It invigorated her. Loathing took residence. The frail little sparrow became an obsession for her too. But in a completely different way. Kanaka's soul desire became that girl's destruction.

But her desire to please him was greater, if only by a little bit. NO, she had to wait. Bide her time. He would become bored of her eventually. And then, if she played smartly, he give the hand-me-down to her to play with. That thought was the only thing that kept her from scaling those tower stairs and digging her eager claws into the little mouse's throat. At night, she planted thoughts in her love's head. Ideas. Ways to quickly gain what he wanted and have done with it. A smile twisted up on his face. He lifted her chin.

"Your heart burns, my pet. Your soul is on fire. And your passion, your fervor, is promising. Patience, my dear. All I ask is patience."

And so, she was patient. Her moment would come, he assured her of that. A dinner. A dinner would be prepared. A feast. He would let her have but a taste of her victory. Only a taste, but it was enough. The fear in her eyes. Kanaka could almost hear her panicked heart beating. She savored every moment down to the last second.

"Say Goodnight to our guest, my pet."

Kanaka grabbed the little lamb's hand and bowed deeply. She planted a poisonous kiss upon the frail, paper skin. She smiled and looked into the fearful face.

"Pleasant dreams, little lamb. Fear not, the slaughter is still far off."

Just a taste, but oh how sweet. She was scolded afterward for misbehaving. No desert. She cheered herself up by playing with her toys some more. As she was going back to her room, she heard a few mice scurrying around. She underestimated how much trouble two little mice could cause. She got too caught up in toying with her sister to realize that her love's prize got away. When it was finally over, she was enraged. She ran after her future play thing.

"I will hunt her down until the day I die. And, if I ever get my hands on her again, I will rip her throat out with my bare hands."

And that's exactly what she intended to do. Patience. She would exact her revenge carefully. It had to be perfect. Something to make her suffer a thousand times what Kanaka had suffered. There were three options. One, snatch her up and kill her, slowly. Immediate gratification. But that wouldn't leave her very satisfied for very long. Two, rip her love from her like she had ripped Hidekai away from her. More satisfying and longer lasting. But very unlikely. That boy was strong. He had a fire in his eyes that was very dangerous. It wouldn't be easy to get rid of him. Three, her children. The most delicious and satisfying of all. Yes, this is the course she would take. Let the little lamb enjoy her happiness for a time. Then, after she forgets all her troubles and is blissfully living her perfect life, tear her most beloved treasure out of her life. Forever. Patience. Good things come to those who wait.


	19. Chapter 18

"Naruto-kun, I can do it." Hinata said pleadingly.

Naruto shook his head.

"Uh-un, Hinata-chan. Tsunade-sama said you need to be extra careful for these last few weeks." He said gently.

Hinata sighed.

"I know what Tsunade-sama said but she never said you had to chew my food for me." She said, slowly getting annoyed.

Naruto smiled.

"What if I make it more enticing?" He said smoothly.

Hinata looked at him curiously. He winked and picked a cherry off Hinata's plate. He popped it in his mouth and held it between his teeth.

"Come get it." He taunted playfully, a gleam in his eyes.

Hinata giggled. She scooted closer to him. She leaned in and covered his mouth with hers. When she pulled away, she displayed the cherry proudly on her tongue before closing her mouth and chewing. Naruto laughed and licked his lips.

"Mm, I think I want some more of that." He said playfully.

Hinata laughed. She smiled at him.

"No more unless you let me chew my own food." She challenged.

Naruto sighed.

"Ok, ok. You win." He said, pushing her plate over to her.

"But promise me you'll go slow?"

Hinata kissed his cheek.

"Promise." She said sweetly.

Naruto looked at his watch and then looked around nervously.

"Where's Kiba-kun, I need to go to work?" He asked.

Hinata shrugged as she chewed her food. Naruto looked out his window and bit his lip. Then he grumbled frustratedly.

"Naruto-kun, go to work. I'll be fine on my own for a few minutes." Hinata said.

Naruto shook his head. He turned to Hinata and cupped her cheek in his hand. He looked at her with a pained expression.

"I've almost lost you so many times already. I'm not taking any chances." he said.

Hinata put her hand over his and closed her eyes. She looked at him understandingly.

"How many times have a told you I love you?" she asked sweetly.

He smiled.

"About a million." he cooed.

Hinata shook her head.

"Not nearly enough."

Naruto laughed and leaned in to kiss her. Then, there was a loud knock on the door.

"It's Kiba! Sorry I'm late, I lost track of the time!" Kiba said from behind the door.

Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Now he decides to show up." he mumbled.

Hinata giggled.

"Just open the door for him so you can get going." she said with a kiss.

Naruto laughed and went to the door. He opened it and glarred at Kiba. Kiba rubbed the back of his head and laughed nervously.

"Eh-heh, did I mention I was sorry for being late?" he said.

Naruto chuckled and shook his head.

"Just take good care of her." he said as he brushed past him.

Kiba turned and gave Naruto a cheesey salute.

"You can count on me!" he said.

True to his word, Kiba diligently took care of Hinata all day. He ran errands for her, brought her whatever she needed, helped her to the bathroom about 27 times, cleaned the house, and made three meals (the first two failed horribly). During all of this he thought of three things. He gained a new appreciation for stay-at-home moms. He wondered how such a tiny girl (with the exception of the babies) could hold so much pee. And, finally he was mystified by the fact that such a needy person could have been so self-sacrificing at one point. By the time Naruto got home, he was dead. Naruto opened the door to see him snoring on the couch while Hinata covered him with a blanket. Naruto rolled his eyes. He stalked up and kicked Kiba off the couch.

"Baka! You're supposed to be taking care of Hinata-chan, not haveing her taking care of you!" He yelled, annoyed.

Kiba scrambled to get his bearings. He rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"I did, loudmouth. I just dozed off for a few." He said drowsily.

He stumbled out the door tiredly and waved goodbye.

"G'night, Hinata-chan. See you tomorrow." he yawned.

The next two and a half months went pretty much the same. Naruto, Kiba, and shino alternated taking extream care of Hinata. She hardly had to lift a finger at all. Though she hated to admit it, she was begining to feel a little suffocated. There were days when she couldn't sneeze without Naruto or Kiba freaking out. Shino was always reliably calm though. He got her what she needed and did what she asked without stressing out about every little thing. Instead of making the "dangerous" (as Naruto deemed it) journey to the hospital, Tsunade came over every few weeks for Hinata's check up. Then, finally, the big moment came.

It was the middle of the night. Naruto and Hiata lay in bed, sleeping peacefully. Then, all of a sudden, Hinata woke up to a sharp pain. She waited for a while to see if it would happen again. Sure enough, ten minutes later, another waved of pain shot through her body. She sat on the edge of the bed and turned the table lamp on.

"Naruto-kun?" she said.

He shot up.

"Huh! Wha-What is it?" he said jumpily.

HInata clutched her stomach and took a deep breath.

"Ooooooh, it's time!" she said breathlessly.

Naruto flew out of bed. He quickly grabbed his robe and threw it on. He grabbed her for her and helpped her into it. Hinata just concentrated on breathing. She rubbed her stomach gently and every once in a while she would grimmace. Naruto scooped her up and carried her out of the appartment.

"Naruto-kun...you can't carry me all the way..." Hinata said as he was going down the stairs.

"I know...Kiba-kun and I built a rikshaw...just in case..." he huffed.

Hinata smiled as she dreathed in and out.

"I knew I could...count on you." she said sweetly.

Naruto carefully put her into the rikshaw and made for the hospital as fast as he dared. When they finally got there, Hinata was starting to breath a bit faster. She was starting to sweat and she occasionally gasped in pain. Naruto rushed in and came back out with three nurses and a gurney. They carefully lifted Hinata up unto the gurney and wheeled her inside.

"Somebody wake Tsunade-sama or Shizune-sama! Whoever can get her the fastest!"

"Prepare a room, quickly!"

Tsunade and Shizune arrived at the same time. When they asked Naruto if he wanted to go in, his reply was: "Hell yeah! Just try and stop me!"

Sixteen painful, tear-filled hours later, Naruto and Hinata had a gorgeous baby girl and a strong baby boy. Michiko Uzumaki entered the world just three seconds before Masashi Uzumaki. Michiko came out and immeadiately started screaming her head off. Masashi came out and cooed and wimpered softly. Naruto beamed with pride. Hinata had been wonderful. She hardly scream the entire sixteen hours. Each time she looked like she was in pain, Naurto cooed to her softly.

"You're fantastic, Hinata-chan. I love you so much."

And after the contraction passed, Hinata would smile at him and say:

"Thank-you, Naruto-kun. I love you too."

While she got some much needed sleep, Naruto held his children for the first time. Michiko on the left and Masashi on the right. He stared at them in awe. His kids. Hinata's kids. They were beautiful. More beutiful than he could have ever imagined. Masashi quietly slept while his sister was fitful. It suddenly dawned on Naruto how much responsability he had now. He had to provide for a family. His wife and two kids. He was grateful he had taken Kakashi's advice to get a job and save up (though he had no idea what right Kakashi had giving marriage and parenting advice). Hinata woke up in a panic.

"Masashi! Michiko! My babies!" she gasped.

Naruto rushed over.

"It's alright, Hinata-chan. Look, they're safe." he said as he tilted so she could look at her children.

Hinata looked and them and sighed. She slumped back onto her pillow. She reached up and gently stroked Michiko's arm. A tear rolled down her cheek.

"I had a nightmare." she whispered.

Naruto lookd at her sadly.

"Kanaka?" he asked, knowing the answer.

Hinata shivered and nodded.

"Hinata-chan, don't worry about her. She won't lay a finger on any of you. I'll make sure of it." NAruto said protectively.

Hinata looked up at Naruto and smiled.

"I know, Naruto-kun. I believe it." she said softly.


	20. Chapter 19

Hinata lived in constant fear of Kanaka. She spent every day of her children's first year of life worrying about what might happen. She moved her family five times before the twin's first birthday. The second year, she grew a little less protetive. She wanted her children to have a happy, normal childhood, after all. Just to be sure, they moved one final time. Tsunade pitched in this time. She had a special house made for them inside Hokage mountain. It was like a secret bunker, only accessible to her, Hinata, and Naruto. There was the main house unit which consisted of two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, and a livingroom. Then, next to the house, Tsunade had a giant arena built. It was like an enormous greenhouse. The ceiling was made eniterly of a thick, bullet-proof, one way glass. There were trees and bushes all over. It was justlike being outside. Hinata felt safe there. She was sure that not even Kanaka would be able to get in. So, after the second year, she was able to live at peace. she even began to forget all about her traumatic expirience with the Koizumi clan. Until she received a painful reminder.

Hinata cradled three-year-old Michiko to her. The todler wailed loudly as Hinata gently bounced her up and down, cooing to her quietly.

"Shhh, Michiko. It's alright, baby, Momma's here."

Masashi clutched at Hinata's shirt and looked up at her with his big, grey eyes.

"Momma. Momma, why Iko-chan cry?" he said in his sweet little voice.

Hinata smiled and stroked his shaggy, black hair with her free hand.

"Iko-chan had a bad dream. Go back to bed, everything's alright." she told him.

"When Papa home?" Masashi asked.

Hinata looekd at him sadly.

"I don't know, baby. Soon, just you wait." she said comfortingly.

Michiko's wailing quieted. She looked at Hinata with her shining blue eyes.

"Papa fight bad guy?" she wimpered.

Hinata smiled and kissed Michiko on top of her bright blonde head.

"Yes. Papa's very good at fighting bad guys." she laughed.

Michiko's face lit up with a smile.

"Story! Tell story 'bout Papa!" she said gleefully.

Hinata closed her eys and shook her head.

"No, no story. It's bedtime. Time for you to go to sleep." she said sternly.

She set Michiko on the ground. The three-year-old pouted her lip and cross her arms over her chest. Masahi yawned.

"I go to bed, Momma. I tired." he said sleepily.

Hinata bent down and picked Masashi up and brought him into the twin's bedroom. Michiko reluctantly followed. Hinata set Masashi down in his bed and pulled the covers over him. She looked at Michiko, who stoo in the doorway pouting. Hinata smiled.

"If you go to bed now like a good girl, I'll tell you a story tomorrow." she said sweetly.

A smile slowly crept onto Michiko's face. She rused forward and hugged her mother tightly.

"Ok. I go sleep now." she said.

Hinata lifted her up and placed her in her own bed. She tucked her in and gently kissed her on the head.

"Goodnight, my angels. Sleep tight." she said as she walked out.

HInata was deep in sleep when she heard a terrifying scream. She popped out of bed and ran to the twin's bedroom. She was petrified to see Kanaka, holding Masashi in her arms. Hinata's little boy trembled in fear and tears stream down his face. Michiko ran and hid behind Hinata. Kanaka smiled gleefully.

"You don't know how long I've waited to see that look on your face. No barriers. No trying to be brave. Just sheer, utter terror." Kanaka said

Hinata dropped to her knees, quivering. Tears rolled down her face.

"Please...please, don't do this...don't take my baby from me..." she begged in a voice broken with sorrow.

Kanaka threw her head back and cackled wickedly. Hinata's whole body shook.

"You knew this day would come! You've known since that dinner all those years ago! Now here it is! My sweet victory! But it doesn't stop here!" She raved.

She stalked over to Hinata and lifted her chin with the tip of a dagger.

"I'll come back for you, my dear. My victory is not complete until I feel your blood on my hands. But I'll let you suffer for a while. I'll let your mind become your own personal torment. And then, when you're lost in the depths of your torment, I'll come and put an end to it all. Parmanately." she said sadistically.

Then, without warning, Kanaka vanished. And with her, Hinata's precious baby boy.

Hinata sat in shock for a long time. Then she burried her heab in her hands and bawled. Michiko came up and put her hand on her mother's shoulder. Hinata looked up at her. Tears were forming in her eyes and her bottom lip quivered. Hinata threw her arms around her and held her close. The two stayed like that until morning.

Tsunade sent out several search parties. The scoured all of the surrounding villages. They questioned everyone that they met. They swept every possible place. But Masashi and Kanaka were nowhere to be found. Hinata cried every night. She hardly got any sleep. Every time she drifted off, Kanaka flashed into her mind and she woke up screaming. She hardly ate. Every day she became more and more sickly. She couldn't function. Naruto had to send Michiko to the Hyuuga main house because Hinata was incapable of taking care off her. After almost a year, to protect herself from the pain, Hinata just went numb. She fully retreated inside of herself, and not even Naruto's constant love and comfort could raise her spirits. Every day, Naruto prayed that his son would be found. It would be thirteen years before his prayers would be answered.


End file.
